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ATARI® SPEED READING

WORKBOOK

Develop Advanced Speed and Comprehension Skills

And

Discover Your New Reading Potential

A A vocated

\ \ shed ponderj

A d v ettis

Use with

ATARI® 400™ or ATARI® 800 1
HOME COMPUTER

ATARI

ATARI® SPEED

READING

WORKBOOK

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without written permission
from both ATARI, Inc. and the publisher.

ATARI, INC.,
Sunnyvale, CA 94086

and

Learning Multi-Systems, Inc.
340 Coyier Lane
Madison, Wl 53713

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Introduction.i

Starting Up . v

Unit 1. 1

Unit 2.*.33

Unit 3.55

Unit 4.79

Unit 5.103

Unit 6.123

Unit 7.153

Unit 8.179

Maintaining Your ATARI® Speed Reading Skills.197

Answer Key.199

RE I Record

209

INTRODUCTION

ATARI® Speed Reading is a unique way to increase your reading speed. With the help of this do-it-yourself pro¬
gram, you could double your speed in only 30 days if you are an average reader now. And, with practice, your reading
comprehension can even improve. The two most important elements required are you and your ATARI Home Com¬
puter.

THE NEED FOR SPEED READING

Today’s students and business people are expected to read and retain a tremendous amount of information. Individuals
must continually improve their communication skills. The ATARI Speed Reading program offers a chance to acquire
more knowledge simply and easily. Working with your computer as a guide, you can relax, make your own schedule, and
have the fun of competing with yourself.

How much and how rapidly your reading rate increases depends on you. Successful new reading habits are easy to
develop with the computer as your coach. This new program is a time-tested method that works for those who work at it.
Each unit gives you valuable tips on how to read more effectively. You also learn to identify any bad habits that might
slow you down.

The eight units in ATARI Speed Reading give you a specific program to follow that is an improved version from a
course that has worked for thousands of people. With the practice exercises, you also get words of encouragement to
keep your enthusiasm and confidence high. You’ll find the course a pleasure, and the results should help ease the
demands on your schedule. For instance, you may learn to do the reading necessary for your job or your studies in half the
time it now takes. Your success will depend on how well you read now, how regularly you practice, and how fast you
learn.

SPEED READING THE ATARI HOME COMPUTER WAY

This program offers many advantages over other speed reading approaches. The combination of the ATARI Home
Computer with a skill-oriented instructional program gives you an educationally sound method of learning. The com¬
puter provides several features to enhance your reading skills:

• A built-in “tutor” gives you immediate feedback, acts as a guide to show you what to do next, and sharpens your
reading skills.

• A timing method automatically computes your reading rate in words per minute.

• Special reading-improvement exercises allow you to:

— Practice high-speed perception of words and phrases in a drill that warms you up for reading and processing in¬
formation faster;

— Pace yourself at faster rates in a gradual and systematic way;

— Read independently with the aid of audible tones that stimulate your reading pace.

• A separate pacing and timing program (Cassette 5) for use with materials other than the ATARI Speed Reading
Workbook lets you pace yourself independently. It is a practice tool and review technique for use at any time.

• A Reading Window paces you with a band of color highlighting the words you are to read. You adjust the rate with
the joystick to increase your speed systematically. The Warm-up exercises use a Reading Window Rate (RWR)
which is the number of times per minute that a new word or phrase appears in the Reading Window. Phrase-reading
also uses the Reading Window to guide you through the selections at a rate established by the words per minute
desired.

• An Audio Metronome Pacing Program provides a series of tones that sound while you read the Paced and Timed
selections. You can adjust the number of tones per minute (tpm) with the joystick. As you increase the tpm, you will
be prompted to read faster.

You will learn more about these features when you begin the course.

MATERIALS

The ATARI Speed Reading package includes a workbook and five cassettes. In addition, you will need the ATARI
400™ or 800™ Home Computer, an ATARI 410™ Program Recorder, an ATARI BASIC cartridge (CXL 4002), a
Joystick Controller (CX40), and your television set.

Workbook. The Workbook contains a variety of exercises, reading materials, helpful suggestions, and new ideas to
help you read with better understanding. There are eight units in the book. The first step in Unit 1 is a pretest.
Answers to exercises are included in the Answer Key.

Cassettes. The Workbook units are contained on the four program cassettes as follows:

Units Cassette

1 and 2 1

3 and 4 2

5 and 6 3

7 and 8 4

The directions for using Cassette 5 are included in the section Maintaining Your ATARI Speed Reading Skills.

Joystick Controller. The joystick changes the speed of words appearing in the Reading Window. When you move the
lever forward, the speed increases, and slows down when you move it backward. The computer timer starts and
stops when you press the red button.

SIX ELEMENTS IN EACH UNIT

Each unit is organized into six elements designed to get you going, pace you, and help you develop new reading tech¬
niques:

WARM-UP EXERCISE. This drill with the computer is designed to increase your word recognition rate, get you react¬
ing faster, and improve your concentration.

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE. In this exercise the Reading Window helps you read at new speeds. Your rate
should gradually and systematically increase with each unit. This exercise will help you read at a faster rate than you
might achieve on your own, and will give you confidence when you read without the Reading Window. The material
used for each Phrase-reading exercise is the first 750 words of the Paced reading selection from your Workbook.

PACED AN D TIMED READINGS. You read these articles in your Workbook with the Audio Metronome Pacing Pro¬
gram and a timer. These readings will reinforce and help you maintain the new reading speed achieved in the Phrase¬
reading exercise. The selections are from a wide range of sources. The articles, which vary from 1500 to 2500 words,
are fairly easy reading. Each one is followed by a quiz to test your comprehension. The easy materials will encourage
you to build speed without sacrificing comprehension.

NEW TECHNIQUES. Each unit focuses on one or more valuable techniques to improve your reading efficiency.
Master and apply all of these techniques to ensure faster comprehension.

FLEXIBLE READING. This is the payoff exercise! Read the selection on your own, using the computer timer to check
your speed. The material varies from easy to difficult. Try to maintain your new reading rates, but slow down when
necessary to maintain your understanding of the material. The key is to be flexible and vary your pace according to the
difficulty of the material.

READING PROGRESS GRAPH. This is a chance to see what you have accomplished. Following each reading selec¬
tion is a Success Log Box where you record your reading rate and comprehension score. Enter these scores into the
computer at the end of each unit. The computer will calculate your Reading Efficiency Index (REI). This index is based
on the average number of words per minute for the Paced, Timed, and Flexible readings multiplied by the average
comprehension score for each. The REI is expressed in words per minute and plotted on a graph to show your pro¬
gress.

RAPID PROGRESS

There are eight units in the program. Most readers make the best progress when they successfully complete two units
each week over a period of one month. Each unit takes about two hours to complete. If you're an average reader, your
reading speed could be doubled in about a month with the kind of practice recommended.

Do each unit in sequence without skipping around. The sequential steps are carefully designed to increase your reading
rate in the shortest time possible. As you do each unit, you will encounter special instructions, new techniques, and
discussions of common problems that readers experience. Follow all of the instructions to get the best results.

The advantage of this program is that you can vary the schedule to suit your personal needs and abilities.

iii

STARTING UP

For directions on how to hook up your ATARI 800 or ATARI 400 Home Computer and ATARI 410 Program

Recorder, refer to the respective operators’ manuals. Then follow the steps below to get started in ATARI Speed

Reading.

1. Make sure the ATARI BASIC Computer Language cartridge is inserted firmly into your home computer and that
the joystick is plugged into Controller Jack 1.

2. Turn on the television, and then the computer. The television screen will display a READY prompt.

3. Insert the appropriate cassette into the Program Recorder. If necessary, press REWIND to return the tape to the
beginning. When the tape is rewound, press STOP/EJECT. Each unit is listed below with the corresponding
cassette and side number. For example, for Unit 1 you insert Cassette 1 with Side 1 up.

Unit 1

Cassette 1

Side 1

Unit 2

Cassette 1

Side 2

Unit 3

Cassette 2

Side 1

Unit 4

Cassette 2

Side 2

Unit 5

Cassette 3

Side 1

Unit 6

Cassette 3

Side 2

Unit 7

Cassette 4

Side 1

Unit 8

Cassette 4

Side 2

4. Set the tape counter (see Note 1) on your Program Recorder to 000 by pressing the tape counter reset button on the
Program Recorder.

5. Type the command CLOAD and press . You will hear a beep from the computer to remind you to press

PLAY on the Program Recorder. (The PLAY button should remain engaged throughout Unit 1.)

6. After pressing the PLAY button on the Program Recorder, press the key.

7. When the READY prompt appears on the screen, type RUN and press ESEECI ■ This signals the computer to load
the program. During this time an introductory audio segment will give you some tips on getting started.

Note 1: Tape Counter. This counter is an aid designed to help you return to particular locations on a program cassette.
At the start of a tape always set the counter to 000 and then make a note of the counter number as you begin to load each
exercise.

A record of the tape counter setting for each exercise is useful in the event you:

• Want to load an exercise out of sequence; for example, you are interrupted in the middle of a lesson and later want to
fast-forward to a certain exercise on the cassette tape; or

• Get an “error message” (see Note 2) while loading an exercise. In both cases you may use the tape counter as a
guide, and then either fast-forward or rewind to the beginning of the exercise.

Once you have located the portion of the program to be replayed, type the command POKE 65, 0, press Q3QXI, and
follow Steps 5-7 above. Notes are included in the text directions to remind you to write down the tape counter settings.

Note 2: Error Message. If an error message appears on your screen, refer to Appendix B, “Error Messages” in your
A TARI BASIC Reference Manual.

UNIT

GETTING OFF TO A GREAT START

• To begin Unit 1 complete the steps in the STARTING UP section.

• Be sure you have inserted Cassette 1 with Side 1 up.

• After listening to the audio segment, turn to the Pretest and read the directions.

Get Ready. Get Set. Go.

PRIETEST

Directions. How fast do you read now? Find out by timing yourself while you read the following selection. Read at
your normal rate, and time yourself with the computer-controlled timer. Be prepared to answer 10 factual questions
about this selection. But don’t look back to answer the questions.

When the Pretest screen appears, the computer is ready for you to begin reading. Position the joystick so the button is
in the upper left corner. Push the button to start the timer, and then begin reading right away. When you finish, push the
joystick button again to stop the timer. Your rate in words per minute will appear on the screen. Record this rate in the
Success Log Box following the questions.

Note: The Pretest screen contains an option to skip this exercise. This option is for future use, once a reader has com¬
pleted the exercise and is, perhaps, reviewing certain material in Unit 1.

More than once I wished I had one of those hand-
sewn sealskin outfits the Greenlanders were wearing.
My fancy American parka and waterproof pants,
which by the end of my trip were so torn I couldn’t
wear them, just didn’t make me feel as warm as the
smiling, casual Greenlanders looked.

Their smiles did more than anything to warm my
spirits, though. Whenever I felt the limitations of my
improvised sign language, I’d look into my guide’s
ready-smiling face — there was more comradeship
and assurance there than I could put into words.

Of course a lot of times I knew the Greenlanders
must have been smiling, kindly, at the sight of 13
foreign adventurers, most of us grandparents, shiver¬
ing like puppets in the wind during their “balmy”
springtime.

I was truly a “grandmother on ice.” Swept along
on a wildly careening sledge behind a fan of tireless
huskies, I thought, “Thase, what in the world are you
doing here?” And looking at myself, wedged into
place between sleeping bags and foam pads and furry
robes, clutching my camera in mittened hands, I had
to laugh.

That kind of reverie never lasted for long though.
A booming “You, you, you” from my driver to his
straining dogs alerted me ... at his command the
huskies made a united left just in time to avoid what
looked like a mile-wide chasm. But after one runner
slipped halfway in and was jerked out by the force
of sheer dog-power, I reassessed the crack’s 20-inch
width. “Not so big,” I said to myself . . . but big
enough to yawn open and swallow a sledge and its
riders.

Daniel, Thase. “Grandmother on Ice,”

International Wildlife , December, 1974, pp. 12-16.

I knew then that this guided sledge trip across
southern Greenland, while expertly planned to ensure
the safety of all involved, would be one of the most
rigorous and demanding events in my life.

We weren’t crossing solid ground. It was all ice —
the frozen, rippled surface of Greenland fjords. And
in April the growling restless tides beneath it butt
their heads against their ceiling, buckling it, slicing it,
opening great zigzagging cracks. But the Greenlanders
don’t worry . . . they just keep an eye peeled, much
as children do when skittering pell-mell down a side¬
walk, careful not to “break their mother’s back.”

My incredible sleighride was hurtling me straight
into the magic realm of the Snow Queen. Crystal
glinting sparkling walls of ice, palaces of green and
blue and rosy luster, halls of light and silence more
entrancing than any Hans Christian Anderson could
dream of.

But always my imagination tripped on the smaller-
than-fairy-tale camera, that, hard black commanding
object I had carried over 3000 miles. Every iceberg,
every silver-tipped, faceted arc of snow, was new
beauty. I wanted to photograph everything, to take
it all back with me, rolled up in the darkness of
celluloid.

By the time we stopped each evening to make
camp, my consciousness was utterly dazed by con¬
flicting impressions . . . hours of skimming slippery
ice and lurching over bumps in the sledge had left
my body aching for rest . . . just to stand still and
upright was incredibly pleasurable. The simple con¬
stant coldness of the world — the air, the sledge, my
clothes, my face — had seemed like a nagging pain.

The succession of images that had literally rushed
past my eyes in blurs and stills now swirled in a
maelstrom inside my head.

But I managed. All of us did. And after a dinner of
frozen stew cooked over a cauldron of boiling snow¬
water, I wiggled into a zipperless sleeping bag, damp
wool socks stretched across my body to dry, cameras
and exposure meter next to my ribs to keep them
from freezing.

Someone, however, forgot to tell me about my
boots. And who but a Hollywood cowboy goes to bed
with his boots on? The next morning my once-soft
leather boots were riveted to the ground, standing as
solid as a baby’s shoes cast in bronze. Fifteen minutes
of rubbing and stomping softened them just enough
for me to force my feet into their icy depths.

I knew it was April. The sun shone almost all
night long. The Greenlanders acted as if it were
spring. But all we knew was, it was cold. Eighteen
degrees one night. Ten degrees the next. After that
we left the thermometer in its case . . . Some things
are better left unknown.

Whenever the going got tough Major Mike Banks,
the crusty veteran of polar expeditions who was lead¬
ing this first amateur trek across southern Greenland,
got tougher.

“This is an expedition,” he bellowed, “not a
picnic.” I must say we needed his gruff advice as
much as we needed the chocolate we’d brought along
for quick energy. Especially when the dogs would
flounder in a heavy drift and we had to get out and
push the sledge, usually up an incline. With all the
great expanse of air around me, it seemed that there
wasn’t enough to fill my lungs.

Almost every day we traveled by sledge — from
Kulusuk, which lies on the DEW Line, to Kap Dan, a
storybook village of red, green and blue houses,'then
43 miles in one day to Kungmiuk, an even smaller
town of 400 people on Angmagssalik Fjord. Finally
north to Tsilag Fjord, where we camped out in our
tunnel-like tents.

On the way to Kungmiuk I really began to learn
about Greenlander ways. This was no trial run, and I
was expected to keep up . . . there wasn’t even an “or
drop out” clause attached. The howling, trembling
huskies seemed tremendously eager to start, so eager
that the faster I leaped on the sledge the better . . . the
possibility of 12 dogs taking off without me was very
real. It was at these times the exuberant dogs gave
their masters the most trouble. Bursting with energy,
they broke out in noisy fights as they waited in
harness, or often as not began a hasty courting. The
drivers had to race from group to group, hauling each
dog into line by its furry tail, shouting commands,
then leaping back into place on the sledge before the
ruckus began all over again.

On the trail, however, it was a different matter.
The huskies could run for hours without slowing, but
the moment they heard the brief command to stop,
they dropped in their tracks, curled their bodies into
fluffy, nose-under-tail balls, and fell asleep. The com¬
mand to start off again, whether moments or an hour
later, found them instantly alert and ready.

It was on the way to Kungmiuk that I began to
realize how difficult life for the Greenlanders was. I
knew that they lived mainly by hunting and fishing,
that their dogs depended on the shark meat and the
scraps of seal and fish their owners provided. I knew
their clothing was handmade, their children’s toys
an empty oil drum ox a handmade sled.

On the trail that day I heard three unmistakable
shots crack the stillness. My driver looked knowing
and elated. In Kungmiuk we discovered the source of
his pleasure. Hunters had brought down a great tawny
polar bear and were already skinning the carcass. I
think all of us making the trip were dismayed that
such a rare and beautiful creature had been killed,
and even more that her death had orphaned a very
young cub.

But I soon realized what this polar bear meant to
the Greenlanders. Native Greenlanders are the only
people allowed to hunt the polar bear in this country
... a strikingly human allowance in Greenland law. I
don’t think that even the villagers felt the bear’s
downfall an unmixed blessing. They took the cub into
the village and began feeding it with milk, hoping
someday to return it, half-grown, to the wild. But few
if any of these adopted cubs ever survive, I learned.

We spent a day out of Kungmiuk fishing for arctic
char. Our drivers cut plate-sized holes in the ice of a
fresh-water stream and we practiced jerking the line
to snare the fish hidden beneath us. My tentmate,
Helen, probably had her “most unforgettable experi¬
ence” at that fishing spot. Stepping too close in the
tracks of her driver, she crashed through the ice into
the equally icy water. After being hauled out, stripped
down to her red flannels and bundled up, she rode
back to Kungmiuk on a sledge. But the uncompre¬
hending driver, whose knowledge of English was
limited to “Hello,” let her off right in the middle of
the village. From there she had to run barefoot in her
thermal underwear to the schoolhouse we called
home.

The day we had to leave Kungmiuk the cobalt sky
had disappeared behind masses of tumbling gray
clouds. Deep snow and low mists made traveling hard
and we stopped early to make camp. As if to ward
off the coming storm, we celebrated Helen’s birthday
with exaggerated gusto.

That night I must have woken a dozen times to the
sound of sleet pelting our small tent. And in the
morning we were so totally snowed into our tents

that we simply stayed put till noon — then warily
set off into the storm.

Sleet and snow pounded us in 30 mph gales.
Visibility grew so poor we soon lost sight of the
sledge ahead of us. Suddenly we were in a “whiteout,”
an eerie phenomenon in which sky and land merge,
horizons disappear. The cold around me took on a
new dimension, a new power; the total unreality of
my surroundings shook me to my bones. Probably'
the only thing that kept me from absolute panic was
the knowledge that my driver was unalterably deter¬
mined and calm. All at once I had confidence he
would get us through.

And he did. Somehow all the sledges came to a

stop near an old fishing hut which seemed to be a
landmark for the drivers. We made camp there,
bracing ourselves for another night in the storm,
listening to the winds buffet our tents. The falling
tide cracked the ice beneath us with a sound like
rumbling thunder, and three tents were hurriedly
moved to avoid disaster. The possibility of a crack
opening up under my tent kept me wide awake until
4:00 a.m., when the leaders called out, “Let’s travel!”

At last we sighted Kulusuk on the horizon. Ahead
of us lay three days of lay-over waiting for the mists
to clear before we could fly back to Reykjavik . . .
three days to take pictures, to share experiences with
my fellow travelers, to take stock of my journey.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

Record your reading speed displayed on the screen in the Success Log Box following the questions. Then answer the
questions without looking back at the selection.

1. Which of the following did the author feel warmed her most?

a. her hand-sewn sealskin outfit

b. the temperate spring winds from the sea

c. the smiles of her native companions

d. the frequent, reassuring comments from the guides

2. Which best characterizes the group making the expedition?

a. mostly grandparents like the author

b. mainly college students on spring vacation

c. a group of retired school teachers

d. members of the Kokomo, Indiana, Rod and Gun Club

3. Which of the following was the main danger during most of the sled trip?

a. the inexperience of the guides

b. cracks and chasms in the ice

c. the possibility of a total “whiteout” occurring

d. half-starved polar bears on the prowl

4. How many people were in the group of adventurers that made the tour?

a. 6

b. 13

c. 48

d. 107

5. What was the time of the year?

a. April

b. July

c. September

d. December

6. Helen, the author’s tentmate, had her “most unforgettable experience” when

a. her boots froze solid during the night

b. she fed the orphaned polar bear cub

c. her birthday greeting was a howling blizzard

d. she slipped into an ice fishing hole

7. From information given in the selection, what would you judge the author to be?

a. missionary

b. meteorologist

c. photographer

d. schoolteacher

8. Which of the following was mentioned as the cause for the rumbling cracking of the ice?

a. the passage of the heavy sledges

b. volcanic activity and earth tremors

c. the accumulation of wind-swept snow

d. the rising and falling tides

9. A “whiteout” occurs when

a. fog blankets roll in

b. a person becomes snow-blind

c. the horizons disappear

d. the sun on the snow creates mirages

10. The author made her sledge trip

a. in southern Iceland

b. in southern Greenland

c. on a large Alaskan lake

d. in Finland’s fjord country

Check your answers using the Answer Key in the back of the Workbook. Record your comprehension score in the Suc¬
cess Log Box.

SUCCESS LOG PRETEST READING

READING SPEED _ WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE_%

(10 points per correct answer)

Enter your comprehension score by typing the percent correct. Then press . Your Reading Efficiency Index

(REI) for the Pretest is now displayed on the screen. Record it in the space below and on the REI Record page in the back
of this Workbook.

PRETEST

READING EFFICIENCY INDEX

Note: Record the tape counter setting on your Program Recorder. Write this number in the space provided at the
beginning of the next exercise, the Warm-up. This number marks the location of the Warm-up on the cassette tape,
should you want to fast-forward to this exercise at a later time.

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

WARM-UP EXERCISE

Tape Counter Setting

Discussion. An important reminder! The purpose of this exercise is to get you moving fast and concentrating. Prac¬
tice limiting your sub vocalization by trying to see words without saying them. Remember, once you can read without pro¬
nouncing every word, your potential speed is limited mainly by your ability to understand, not by your ability to talk fast!

Directions. In this exercise you note one word and then quickly match it. The Reading Window—a band of color sur¬
rounding a word—highlights a word on the left of the screen and then moves across to the right, highlighting additional
words. When you see the same word reappear in the window, press the joystick button. For example, if the initial word is
car, push the button when the Reading Window surrounds car.

car bar far | car | can cat auto

To get started, watch for the Warm-up screen to appear. Then select your own Reading Window Rate (RWR)—the
speed at which the words appear in the Reading Window. Choose a number between 50 and 200—50 is quite slow and 200
is very fast—and push the joystick forward until the desired number appears on the bottom of the screen. (Be sure the
joystick is always positioned correctly—with the button in the upper left corner.)

We suggest you start at 60. Then press the joystick button to begin the exercise and each time you match a word. The
idea is to go as fast as you can, yet still be accurate. Try to increase your speed during the exercise by pushing the joystick
forward.

After pressing the joystick button for the last item, your time and number of correct answers will be shown. You’ll also
have an option to repeat the exercise to improve your speed and accuracy. Record your results in the space below.

Note: The Warm-up screen contains an option to skip this exercise. This option is for future use, once you have com¬
pleted the exercise and are, perhaps, reviewing certain material in this unit.

WARM UP EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY MINUTES J

SCORE

SECOND TRY MINUTES _

SCORE _

Note: Record the tape counter setting on your Program Recorder in the space provided at the beginning of the
Phrase-reading exercise. This number marks the location of the Phrase-reading exercise on the cassette tape, should you
need to find this exercise at a later time. Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE Tape Counter Setting

Audio Review. You have just heard a number of important facts about the reading process and the intent of this exer¬
cise. Because these reading facts are important to keep in mind from time to time, we’ve printed our audio discussion of
them below. You may refer to it now to be sure you have them straight; or later, for a quick review. Remember! While
they will not automatically make you read faster, they may make you aware of bad habits that limit your concentration
and speed.

Reading Facts You Need to Know

Readers tend to sub vocalize, or talk silently to themselves. Trying to see words without saying them every time you
read will help increase your rate. Being aware of your eye fixations also helps. A fixation occurs when your eyes stop and
focus on a certain point. As your eyes move over a line of print they proceed in a series of jerky movements. While your
eyes are moving you see nothing. You see only when they are stopped or ‘‘fixed.” What you see in a fixation can vary
from a single letter to more than a word.

The movements between fixations are called saccadic movements. They should be rapid and efficient because they
serve no purpose but to move you from one fixation to the next as you read a line of print.

This is what happens when an average or better reader reads a line of print. Each X is a fixation and each-► is

a saccadic movement.

X--X- -X-^X - -X - -X

As your eyes move over a line of print, they proceed in a series.

Note that each fixation takes in one or more words. A beginning reader or any reader attempting to read unfamiliar
words would take many more fixations to read a line of print. She or he might average several fixations per word. As the
number of words you can handle per fixation increases, reading efficiency and speed increase.

With efficient reading, saccadic movements proceed from left to right. Any right-to-left movements within a line are
regressions. Some regressions are necessary, like rechecking a new or difficult word or rereading a phrase or sentence to
get the facts straight. But, excessive regressions are usually a symptom of bad reading habits or poor concentration. To
read more rapidly and effectively, you’ll need to eliminate most regressive movements. The Reading Window can help
because it forces you to keep moving ahead.

The return sweep is the eye movement that takes you from the end of one line of print to the beginning of the next. A
poorly executed return sweep can cause you to wind up a line or two from where you need to be. The results are lost time
and interrupted concentration while the necessary adjustment is made. If you find that return sweeps are causing dif¬
ficulties for you, draw some lines on a printed page like this:

The return sweep is the eye movement that takes

you from the end of one line of print to the

beginning of the next.

Draw the lines on several pages and use them to guide your eyes from the end of one line to the beginning of the next. If
some practice with the guide lines doesn’t solve the problem, hold a marker under each line as you read. But, don’t
become dependent on the marker. The back sweep should be a smooth, almost automatic movement. Ultimately, it must
be accomplished without assistance from lines or markers.

To become an efficient reader, you need to be aware of these basic eye movements, but try not to dwell on them while
you read. During a rapid reading exercise, concentrate only on reading as fast as you can grasp the material. The most ef¬
fective thing you can do to increase your rate is to read as rapidly as you can! Decide now that it’s important to read faster
and that you can read faster.

Discussion. A brief reminder of the purpose of the Phrase-reading exercise: To achieve new reading speeds you
might not initiate on your own. Let the Reading Window push you to take in more information with each eye stop than you
would normally take in. Apply your new skills at new reading rates!

The Reading Window will highlight phrases in a left-to-right movement at a rate you determine before starting the ex¬
ercise. In Units 1-3 the length of the phrases is about 8-12 letters. The phrase length increases in later units.

Directions. To begin the Phrase-reading exercise, select your new reading rate by adding 50 words per minute (wpm)
to your Pretest rate. For example, if you read 200 wpm on the Pretest, your new rate would be 250 wpm. Enter this
number when the screen prompts you to do so. Note the words-per-minute box on the screen and push the joystick for¬
ward or back until your new reading rate appears. Each single push or pull will change the displayed reading rate up or
down by 25 wpm. If your new reading rate is a number between the available rates, simply choose the rate closest to
yours.

After you have entered your wpm, press the joystick button and begin. You will have an option to repeat this exercise
for additional practice if you wish. Record your wpm rate in the space below when finished.

As you read, you will notice an audio pacing tone that accompanies each Reading Window stop. We'll talk about the
purpose for the tones later.

Note: The Phrase-reading screen contains an option to skip this exercise. This option is for future use, once you have
completed the exercise and are, perhaps, reviewing certain material in this unit.

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY READING SPEED _

SECOND TRY READING SPEED _

WPM

Note: Record the tape counter setting on your Program Recorder in the space provided at the beginning of the Paced
reading.

Are you going to repeat this exercise?

Press Y or N, THEN

RETURN

Set Your Pace

PACED READING Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. Recall our discussion of subvocalization and the basic eye movements — fixations, return sweeps, and
regressions — and keep these facts in mind as you push for speed on this selection. The article is fairly readable, so you
can concentrate primarily on your rate. But try to answer at least 7 of the 10 questions correctly.

Directions. Read this selection with the aid of the computer-controlled timer and Audio Metronome Pacer. Your goal
is to match or exceed the speed you achieved on the Phrase-reading exercise. When the Paced reading screen appears,
set your tones-per-minute (tpm) rate at 60 with the joystick.

As you start reading, increase your tpm rate — by pushing the joystick forward — until you feel the pace of the tones
generally corresponds with the pace of your fixations (eye stops). For each push forward the tpm increases by 20.
Remember to read fast enough to eliminate pronouncing every word to yourself! Then adjust to the new pace!

Press the joystick button to begin reading and press it again when you finish. Answer the questions without looking
back at the selection and record your scores in the Success Log Box.

Gannon, Robert. “So You Want to Read Faster.” Reprinted courtesy of Popular Science ,
February, 1968, pp. 97-99, 212. © 1968 Popular Science Publishing Co., Inc.

I just read a detective novel. It wasn’t very good so
I didn’t waste much time. It took me 36 minutes.
Yesterday I read Hal Clement’s Needle , an excellent
book. I wanted to savor it so I took my time — one
hour and 33 minutes’ worth.

Two months ago it would have taken me half a
day to plow through either of these. In the meantime,
though, I’ve taken a speed-reading course, and now
I can gobble up books at what used to seem an
astronomical rate.

But is it reading? Some authorities claim it isn’t.
Personally, I don’t much care; the technique does
what I want it to — sort of.

The thing that prompted me to take the course
was the threat of asphyxiation: The piles of unread
newspapers, books, and magazines towering about the
house might fall on me. But two things held me back:

• Doubts that any system could radically and
permanently increase my speed.

• Money: $175 for the course given by the Evelyn
Wood Reading Dynamics Institute. (Other schools
charge anywhere from $15 or so for classes to more
than $200 for individual instruction.)

But I concluded that if I could double my speed —

a goal far short of what the ads promise — the $175
investment, stretched out over a lifetime, wouldn’t
be so much after all. I’d gamble.

Certainly I was in good company. Among the
names of the 360,000 Wood graduates appear Sena¬
tors Stuart Symington (who says he “can now read
technical journals about 10 times faster” than before
the course) and Herman Talmadge (who wants speed
reading introduced to the country’s educational
system).

Evelyn Wood started it all two decades ago when
she was teaching in Utah. “I began to work with the
idea of increasing the reading speed of my students,”
she says. “I knew there must be a faster way of read¬
ing.” She searched for fast readers, located 50 of
them who could top 1,500 words per minute
(w.p.m.). “These 50 exceptional readers, I found, had
several reading characteristics in common: 1) they
all read in a downward direction, rather than from
left to right; 2) they absorbed the meaning of whole
areas of a page at a time; and 3) they adjusted their
speed to the type of material they were reading.”

Inhaling reading matter. She quit teaching, devel¬
oped a program, and began telling adults how to

practically inhale reading matter. Today 50,000
students a year take the Wood course.

At the first class I found with a shock that my
present workaday reading was abysmally slow: 200
w.p.m. compared with about 300 for the rest of the
class. My retention/comprehension rate, though, was
high: 85 percent.

Instructor Frank North pointed out some of the
bad reading habits we’d have to overcome:

• Many readers “subvocalize” — tend to subtly
form words with their vocal cords. Studies at
Berkeley’s Institute of Human Learning show that
an individual who subvocalizes to any great extent
“is limited to a top reading speed of approximately
150 w.p.m. — a maximum attainable while reading
aloud.”

• Slow readers are sloppy readers. Plodding at
rates far below their ability, they get bored, day¬
dream, have trouble concentrating, miss whole sec¬
tions. People who say they read slowly in order to
concentrate are fooling themselves.

• When a person reads, his eyes don’t sweep
smoothly across the page, but stop every so often
when the actual seeing is done. Slow readers pause a
lot, fast readers rarely.

• Most readers not only stop but go back. The
sentence: “A rider came racing down the road out of
control,” may seem to read, “A driver came racing
down the road racing down the road out of control.”
Poor readers may retrogress from eight to 11 times
per 100 words, good readers not at all.

• Most readers fight changing their habits because
relearning is hard work, and they somehow feel that a
suggestion for change is an attack.

Reading schools try to eliminate bad habits by
forcing a student to go so fast he hasn’t time for non¬
sense. Most do this by using machines. Some use a
tachistoscope to flash words or phrases rapidly on a
screen so students learn to see quickly. (This is some¬
thing like the device used in aircraft-spotter classes
during World War II.) Other schools use pacers, desk¬
top gadgets that slide curtains down pages of text
slighty faster than the reader’s “comfortable” speed.

The Evelyn Wood school uses a finger. Yours. “We
train you to use your hand to pull your mind down
the page,” says North. “Soon you find your mind
controlling your hand.”

Out go the bad habits. Sounds simple. And it is,
really. But that first lesson was the start of eight
weeks of mental misery — a 2 V 2 -hour session a
week plus an hour-a-day drill — in which my old
comfortable way of reading would be strained, up¬
rooted, and twisted out of shape.

The first week consisted mainly of learning how to
use the finger as a pacer. The primary object is to
“underline” a line or block of lines by sweeping the

hand across the page at one-second intervals. The
action pulls your eyes along, preventing flip-backs.
(Eventually you learn to slant the sweep so the pat¬
tern resembles that of a flat Z then an S stretched
vertically — and then, with some students, a line
straight down the page.)

Each week we would be given individual minimum
reading speeds we must adhere to in our homework
drill, said North. The first week we’d all have the
same minimum: 800 w.p.m. (That’s two of these
PS lines a second.) “But you don’t have to stay at
that low rate.”

At home we practiced first with our books upside
down, simply to get the rhythm of hand sweeps.
Then, using what the school calls a “lazy-S” hand
motion, we ran through 10 pages at two sweeps (two
seconds) per page, then at three sweeps per page,
finally dropped down to the sluggish 800 w.p.m. —
or about 25 sweeps (depending on the book). At
two sweeps, if we understood what we were “read¬
ing,” we would be going at something like 10,000
w.p.m. But at that speed the only story line I picked
up was that a couple of guys did something. And
that, it seems, is as much as we were expected to get
out of it.

Faster and faster. A week later, everyone was dis¬
gruntled. North’s response was to urge, egg, and
insult us to go faster and faster. The important thing
was not comprehension, North said, but to get the
feeling of going fast.

The prime assignment for the second week’s home¬
work. was to concentrate on the Z form of finger¬
tracing — extremely difficult because when you’re on
the downward stroke you’re forced to sort of read
backwards. “It’s your introduction to the art of out-
of-order reading,” North said. “And I’ve never seen
anyone come out of this week with a heck of a lot.”
He was right. I didn’t.

But on my homework paper I noticed that my
reading minimum had climbed to 1,000 w.p.m.

One object of speed-reading courses is to get you
used to seeing chunks of reading matter. So during
our third week’s class session we used booklets with
word groupings. We’d flip by these as quickly as
possible, trying to pick them up on the way. On one
page,.for instance, was this:

WHEN IS

YOUR BIRTHDAY?

On other pages were other groupings:

WHAT SHOULD WE
DO ABOUT THE
CITIES?

I WENT TO
THE STORE.

I WENT TO THE

STORE TODAY
AND BOUGHT.

I WENT TO THE
STORE TODAY AND
BOUGHT A BOX
OF STARCH.

We were then given a test in what the institute
called an impossibly tough book: Willy Ley’s Satel¬
lites , Rockets and Outer Space . The test was on a
chapter on Mars, read at above 1,000 w.p.m. My
comprehension score: an amazing 90 percent. My
nearest competitor got something like 40 percent.
(But I had just researched an article on Mars.)

The third week of homework upped my rate to
2,000 w.p.m. Ridiculous. But I was moving my hand
rhythmically.

By the fourth lesson, though, I was really dis¬
couraged. I was learning to skim, but not very effec¬
tively. North had me reading at 2,500 w.p.m., but I
retained virtually nothing. I found myself simply
watching my finger go down the page and thinking
about other things.

And the practice time was hard to fit in. During
this fourth week I lost so much time I had to join
another class, one that had begun a week after mine.

My new teacher was Jeff Weisenfeld, who spoke
fast and frequently, like a lawyer — which he is during
the day.

Students in his class were complaining, too. No
retention, they said. “You’re wrong,” answered
Weisenfeld. “Have you ever tried to think of no¬
thing? You can’t do it. Now, as your hand travels
down the page your mind picks up some of what
your eyes are seeing. You’re gathering in a good
amount, but you don’t realize it.”

During that session we exercised through our first
whole book. John Steinbeck will be unhappy to
learn that I zipped through his 29,500-word novel,
The Pearl , at the rate of 2,110 w.p.m. Took me 14
minutes. But please don’t ask questions.

Now I was pretty well convinced the whole course
was one gigantic put-on. But then I had to cull data

from a volume of 250,000 words. At my old rate of
200 w.p.m., I’d need 20 hours to get through the
book.

But I sped along at the fastest clip I could — maybe
2,000 w.p.m. In three hours I had finished. Did I
understand it? Not at all. But I picked up what I
needed for an article I was researching.

Weisenfeld had us take a whole minute to read one
300-word page during our sixth class. It was excru¬
ciating to go so slowly. And 300 w.p.m. is 100 words
faster than my beginning speed.

Better and better. Finally, the last session. And
another test. The book was the same we had used
for our entrance exam, a biography of Albert Ein¬
stein. Eight weeks before, I was reading at 200 w.p.m.
with 85-percent comprehension. My final score: 1,520
w.p.m., 92V2-percent comprehension. My speed had
multiplied more than seven times.

Can I honestly say I read that fast?

No, though Evelyn Wood will heartily disagree. I
believe I did get two important things: the ability
to skim effectively at anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000
w.p.m., though I get very little of the “flavor”; and
possibly a tripling of my “comfortable” reading rate.

Whether or not I’ll lose the technique is another
question. The only wide survey of ex-students —
1,800 of them from the San Francisco area — showed
that after a year one-third of the people weren’t using
the method at all, and had slipped back to their old
rates. Another third said they use it sometimes, and
that probably they have maintained speed. But the
rest of the students — many of whom had attended
free brush-up workshops — said they felt they were
reading faster a year later.

In day-to-day use, I find a few minor negatives.
For example, in order to keep at my new rates I
must continue to use my finger. And reading while
eating presents a problem.

Also, there is a nagging doubt that at those high
speeds I’m giving the author a fair shake. But then, if
I didn’t skim many books, I wouldn’t have time to
read them at all.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

Record your reading speed in the Success Log Box following the questions. Then answer the questions without looking
back at the selection and check your work using the Answer Key in the back of the book. Also record your comprehension
score in the Success Log Box.

1. According to the article, exceptional readers read rapidly because they

a. don’t concern themselves with comprehension

b. keep up a steady rhythm of eye movement

c. read in a downward direction

d. never slow down to deal with any material

2. The main problem of slow readers is that they

a. comprehend more than they really need to

b. are sloppy readers who tend to miss whole sections of a page

c. do not pause frequently enough to “digest” key points

d. read at different rates, depending on the material

3. Speed reading schools get you to read faster by

a. convincing you it’s for your own benefit

b. charging high prices to make you want to get your money’s worth

c. creating a spirit of competition among students

d. forcing you to go so fast there is no time for nonsense

4. Why does the Evelyn Wood school use the finger as a pacer?

a. because it serves to “pull the mind” down the page

b. because once you learn how to use it, you always have it handy

c. because no other device works so well

d. because the finger is an extension of the self

5. At first, the important thing in speed reading is

a. to emphasize the importance of comprehension

b. to set a goal that is realistic but challenging

c. to follow “S” and “Z” patterns in reading a page

d. getting the feel of going fast

6. One object of speed reading courses is to

a. get you to see chunks of reading matter

b. get you to read paragraphs at a glance

c. improve comprehension and critical thinking abilities

d. sharpen perception by improving eye movements

7. As your hand pulls your eyes rapidly down a page

a. you will probably comprehend very little

b. you must not be aware of the words

c. you gather more information than you realize

d. you pick up only the words your finger touches

8. What was the range of the author’s beginning and ending reading rates?

a. 200 - 1340

b. 200 - 1520

c. 100 - 1,000

d. 300 - 10,000

9. The two ways in which the author feels he benefited most from his speed reading
course are that

a. now he is able to skim effectively and to retain the “flavor” of what he reads

b. he succeeded in tripling his “comfortable” reading rate, so now he can read
three times as many things

c. he is able to read more books and to scan newspapers faster

d. now he has the ability to skim at 1,000 - 2,000 w.p.m. and has tripled his
^comfortable” reading rate

10. The author feels skimming over novels is justifiable because

a. he gets as much out of them as he did before

b. he has time to read many more books than he could before

c. all he ever wanted from reading were the main points

d. he has too much to read to go slow

SUCCESS LOG PACED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(10 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

Time Out

TIMED READING

Discussion/Directions. The discussion and directions are the same for the Timed as for the Paced reading. A word of
encouragement: Keep pushing! The skills you are using now are new; you need practice to learn them. We’ll help you all
we can!

Set your tones-per-minute rate at 100. This rate represents about 40 tpm faster than your beginning tpm rate for the
Paced reading. If this pace seems slower than the one you achieved on the Paced reading, increase the tpm rate right
away. If this pace seems comparable or even a little faster than your Paced reading speed, try to maintain it. Keep in mind
the pace you select should always feel slightly uncomfortable, or a little fast. Try to correctly answer at least 7 of the 10
questions.

When the Timed reading screen appears, set the rate, and press the joystick button to begin and again when you finish
reading.

White, Whitney. “A Lamp at Dusk: Adjusting Puts Peace Into Growing Old.” Reprinted with permission
from The National Observer , December 15, 1973, p. 20. © Dow Jones & Company, Inc., 1973.

Dear Daughter:

Your visit gave me a big lift, and, despite our no¬
stop chatter, I thought of a dozen other things we
should have discussed.

I am sorry you dread old age so much. I confess it
is not my most favorite of life’s chapters, but as
Samuel Hopkinson Smith once said: “Old age? There
is nothing one can do about it, and after all, one is
only old once.” This is probably the most factual
thing that can be said about it, and much nearer the
truth than calling it the “Golden Age” or other Polly-
anna names, trying to make it sound like a glorious
romp.

You asked me to write down some thoughts I have
on it. So here goes. I know full well that anything I
say will soon be dated, as doctors will find new drugs
that will keep the octogenarian agile on the tennis
court and will decrease for many old people the
crippling discomforts and poignant experience of
growing old.

Many thoughts are tumbling around in my head,
asking to be expressed. If I tried to voice them all it
would make a 1,000-page tome covering such subjects
as belief in life hereafter, health, habits, hazards,
financial security, and on and on. I will spare you
much of it.

I believe in some sort of life hereafter, and it stimu¬
lates me constantly to prod my spirit onward and
upward. Since I have this belief, I think this period,
as far as possible, should be one of continuing educa¬
tion; for whatever going-on or coming back I am
assigned, I want to be qualified for at least the work
of the intermediate grade rather than that of the pre¬
nursery. So if you have a spark of belief in life here¬
after, feed and fan it, for it minimizes immeasurably

the sense of futility we elders so often have.

Jumping from the subject of our heavenly home to
that of our earthly one, now with three unused bed¬
rooms, an unused rumpus room, an oversize living
room, plus a yard once given over to baseball but
now to crabgrass, one, two if lucky, must inevitably
come to terms with what to do with it.

Throughout life there are crisis moments when
tough decisions have to be made. How and where to
live this last chapter is one of these decisions. Here
are some of the alternatives: (1) move in with one’s
children; (2) stay in one’s own home; (3) move to an
apartment; (4) go to a retirement home.

Dialog With a Gremlin

As I discuss these with my contemporaries, all but
a few seem to agree not to live with one’s children.
That is not because you are not charming and hospit¬
able and that we do not love you, but your pace is
too fast, your household too active, and your space
too limited. Besides, you have enough responsibilities
without taking on us old crocks.

I wobble as to what to do with our house, where
we have lived 50 years. I know now I should have
given it up when my last birdling left the nest. Then
it would have been easier to adapt to a new environ¬
ment, and I would not have found the luxury of
having empty rooms into which I could toss things
and decide later what to do with them.

Yes, I might as well admit it. I am a space addict. I
like to roam from room to room and out into the
yard where little things that once gave me a backache
when I planted them are rewarding me now by blos¬
soming. I like to come into the house and see my
cherished possessions standing in their familiar places.

so many reminding me of the lives of my ancestors.

Until I tangled with this problem I did not realize
what a hold the old homestead had on me, each inch
of it harboring fun-filled — and some tear-filled —
memories. Like a turtle’s shell, it is part of me. I can
draw into it and let the world go by or, when feeling
sociable, emerge. Blessed be my independence!

I wish the gremlin that keeps needling me to solve
this problem with my head and not my heart would
cease its noisy chatter. I keep telling it how like
Paradise it would be to stay put. It chuckles sardoni¬
cally and says, “No, not like Paradise, with its host of
ministering angels. Face it, old lady. (It knows how I
hate to be called senior citizen.) Just because some of
your friends have been lucky and found helpers does
not mean you will be. So who will talk to you when
the winter’s icy sidewalks isolate you? With your un¬
steady legs, who will market for you, bank, and do
your sundry errands, or pick you up when you fall
and break your hip?”

This dialog between my gremlin and myself makes
vivid the intense silence of the house as the snow piles
up to the windowsills and the frustration of wanting
things and not being able to totter up to the village to
get them. It is amazing how distance lengthens as the
years ahead grow fewer.

The argument for an apartment is that I can still
maintain more or less my independence. I will have a
door I can close and people to summon in an emer¬
gency. I know I will miss space and a garden plot, and
that with the present cost of apartments I will not
save any money, but at least you kids will not have
me on your minds and you will inherit some nice
pieces of furniture while you are still in the social
whirl.

I know you asked me to consider a retirement
home. There is much to be said for them: perpetual
care, people constantly around, release from responsi¬
bility, and planned activities and entertainment. How¬
ever,'I am not sure I am the type to enjoy all these
goodies.

You are a child of the herd. You like noisy cock¬
tail parties, crowded ballroom floors, and droppers-
in for coffee. I, however, am more like your sister.
Do you remember when she wanted to leave college
because she hated eating in the noisy dining room
with a hundred “chewers and chatterers”? She and I
have to have some solitary days just to mooch around
in, and the independence of choosing the people we
want to see and the places we want to go. Don’t
think I feel our type is superior to yours, for goodness
knows it would be a drab, colorless world without
people with bounce like you.

Two Ways to Meet Aging

The number of words I have devoted to this dwel¬
ling problem may lead you to think that, having set¬

tled it, old age has no other adjustments to make. Far
from it, dear daughter. As I sit here and write I am
aware that my body has grown creaky with wear.
Never having been afflicted with chronic ills, I have
not been conscious of it before, and always expected
it to do the things I ask of it.

Today, however, trying to get going in the morn¬
ing is much like trying to crank our old Model T
Ford. I have to crank and crank it, and several times
during the day’s travail it sputters and falters, crying
out for bed rest. My doctor is sympathetic as I tell
him how my knees buckle and my legs wobble. He,
however, has no advice to offer, and ends by saying,
“What do you expect at your age?”

I know I must learn to live with this dissipation of
my bodily strength and accept a less active life, but I
do deplore it happening to my friends. It is sad indeed
to see them failing; first giving up walking, then driv¬
ing, then growing housebound, and finally going to a
nursing home for their last days. There are lots worse
things than death for those who experience it, but
for those they leave there is an aching void, difficult
at our age to fill.

When I was a youngster my nurse taught me a
hymn sung to a jolly little tune. “Count your many
blessings, count them one by one” were the words of
the chorus. We sang them in duet, I beating time
with a comb on the bedpost. Now in my advanced age
I find it is good therapy to do just that, and the
blessings really mount up when I put my mind on it.
Old age certainly has its compensations: freedom
from being responsible for the young in this day of
the new morality, freedom from committee work,
freedom from caring about status, and freedom from
outside pressures.

There seem to be two ways of meeting old age. One
is to resign to it, letting it take over your life. The
other is to adjust to it, still keeping in the stream of
life and prodding oneself gently into the activities one
can still do.

My grandmother chose the former. I can still see
her, sitting and rocking on her porch in Brookline.
She wore frilly caps, thus hiding her hair (or the lack
of it; I never knew which) and abolishing the need to
struggle to a beauty shop and sit for a precious hour
under a dryer. A lace shawl took the curve of her
bent shoulders, and I always smelled a faint fragrance
of lavender as I kissed her. To all appearances there
was no turbulence in her soul. And thanks to not
having television shouting daily of the agonies of the
world, she was able to say, and often did say, “This
is a good, good world.” She went to her Creator from
the house where she had lived 60 years and in which
she had brought up eight children, rather than having
been toted off to a nursing home to spend her last
days among strangers. I think hers was the easier way.

However, today with the doctors stressing circulation
and the importance of keeping going, we have little
chance of doing it.

As I said in the beginning of this all-too-long letter,
this is not my favorite chapter in life. I do realize,
however, that the Twentieth Century grandmother
has a better life than any previous ones. With discri¬
mination she can have pleasant entertainment on
television or radio. With the telephone she can share
her doings or the lack of them with her friends, or
listen to theirs. The Government is concerned with
her and gives a slight but welcome boost to her
finances. Many communities have committees that
plan ways of getting her out and amusing her, as
well as sending in hot nourishing meals to her. Who
knows what will be offered you when you reach this
chapter!

Ulysses, returning home from the Trojan wars tired

and grown old, is reported by Tennyson to have said:
“Though much is taken, much abides, and though we
are not now that strength which in old days moved
heaven and earth, that which we are, we are. One
equal temper of heroic hearts made weak by time
and fate but strong in will to strive, to seek, to find,
and not to yield.”

So now, inspired by those words that I say often
to myself, I must go out for a short walk, thus helping
my heart — which feels less than heroic — do its
pumping job. When I come in there will be the phil¬
harmonic to listen to. I will light the fire, take up
my knitting, and, shutting out the world, I will
agree with my grandmother that there are moments
in this chapter when I can say this is a good world.

I hope I have not exhausted you. Keep cheerio,
and with love, Mother

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

How fast did you read this time? Remember you’re competing only against yourself. Answer the questions without
looking back at the selection. Check your work in the Answer Key and record your scores in the Success Log Box.

1. The reason Granny wrote to her daughter was to

a. get advice on where to live

b. tell her the benefits senior citizens receive

c. express her thoughts concerning old age

d. express her irritability at all her inner aches and pains

2. Because Granny believed in life hereafter, she was determined to

a. continue her education

b. continue discussions with the Gremlin

c. attend church regularly

d. be kindly to all of her friends

3. Granny’s “tough decision” in her last chapter of life was to decide whether or not to

a. become more involved in community activities

b. be like her own grandmother had been

c. accept old age gracefully

d. move from her beloved home

4. Why didn’t Granny want to live with her children?

a. They lived too far from her friends.

b. Their house was too small and their pace too fast.

c. She enjoyed living alone too much.

d. She felt she could never leave her memory-filled home.

5. Granny perceives her home as a

a. place to grow and especially to die in

b. good meeting place for neighbors

c. turtle’s shell into which she can draw herself

d. rambling, spacious place that has too many stairs

6. What kind of lifestyle does Granny prefer?

a. lots of people around to go to lunches and teas with

b. structured days with plenty of projects or activities to keep her from
becoming depressed

c. living in pure isolation from the world in her own home

d. solitude with the option of going and coming when she pleases

7. Granny compares her body to a Model T Ford by mentioning that

a. it’s hard to “get going” in the morning

b. frequent “repairs” are needed

c. they both are old, tired, and out of date

d. they always cry out for rest

8. What does Granny think she has little chance of doing?

a. being able to keep walking much longer

b. being remembered like her grandmother was

c. dying like her own grandmother did

d. seeing her grandchildren often

9. What are the two ways Granny saw as a way to meet old age?

a. resigning or adjusting

b. stagnating or becoming involved

c. living in your home or going to a nursing home

d. living with your children or living all alone

10. What is Granny going to do after she finishes her letter?

a. go out to dinner with one of her friends

b. go out for a walk and come home to her knitting and warm fire

c. watch television and telephone a neighbor

d. write her other daughter that she believes this is a good world

SUCCESS LOG TIMED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(10 points per correct answer)

Note: Record the tape counter setting on your Program Recorder in the space provided at the beginning of the Tech¬
niques section.

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

To Help You Read Faster
TECHNIQUES

Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. Learn to read faster than you talk! Most people can pronounce words (speak) only between 150 and 250
words per minute. To read faster than this rate, you have to begin seeing words without saying them to yourself. The ac¬
tivities below will help you to begin recognizing words without pronouncing them. Be sure to complete the activities
before beginning the Flexible reading.

1. Cover the first groups of words below with an index card or piece of paper. Allowing yourself only a 1-second ex¬
posure*, quickly glance at the words in the group. When the card is back in place, think of one word or a short phrase
that describes all the words in the group. For example, if the words are terrier, cocker, poodle, and Siamese, you
might write down, “animals” or “pets.” “Canine” or “dogs” would be unacceptable. Record all your answers in the
appropriate space next to the group of words. Sometimes you will see the STOP symbol in the units, which will remind
you to stop and compare your answers with those in the Answer Key.

1. terrier

halter

14.

yarn

cocker

girth

fish line

poodle

bridle

string

Siamese

saddle

rope

2. California

stirrup

wire

Maine

cauliflower

ribbon

Kansas

broccoli

15.

stein

Wisconsin

asparagus

can

Florida

eggplant

bucket

3. tulip

corn

—

bowl

rose

10.

splint

mug

lily

gauze

pail

carnation

adhesive

cup

pansy

bandage

16.

trigger

4. fir

antiseptic

nozzle

maple

11.

snap

handle

poplar

hook

barrel

pine

button

hammer _

redwood

zipper

17.

sling

5. tiger

buckle

hammock

panther

12.

spatula

cot

leopard

strainer

bed

tabby

grater

mattress

lynx

beater

18.

chalk

6. hammer

tongs

paint

saw

13.

sock

wax

pliers

shoe

lead

screwdriver

pants

ink

level

shirt

19.

rake

7. Erie

skirt

hoe

Superior

mower

Huron

hose

Michigan

sickle

Ontario

*A 1-second exposure is approximately the time it takes you to say “one-one-thousand.” As you remove the card, say
“one-one-thousand” to yourself. As you finish saying this phrase, the card should be back in place.

20. mirror
calm water
glass

shiny metal
waxed floor

21. compass
sun
stars
map

wind sock

22. lens
film
meter
tripod
filter

23. hood
helmet
goggles
ear muffs
shoulder pads

24. choker
scarf
tie

collar

25. bus
train
airplane
subway
car

26. heater
washer
refrigerator
furnace

27. cuckoo
flamingo
robin
mallard
thatcher

28. seat
frame
pedal
handlebar
gear
fender

29. tent
sleeping bag
back pack
dried food
gas burner

30. alligators
snakes
turtles
lizards
crocodiles

31. pistil
bud
leaf
root
stamen

32. coat
sweatshirt
jacket
sweater
windbreaker

33. sad
angry
happy
excited
nervous

34. reading
knitting
bridge
bingo
writing

35. red cloak
crowd
bull
swords
matador

36. ward
patient
surgery
nurse

technicians _

37. Hume
Plato
Socrates
Descartes
Thoreau

38. House
electorate
President
judiciary
Senate

39. Volkswagen
Datsun
Toyota
Maverick
Gremlin

40. Rhode Island
Maine

New Hampshire
Connecticut
Vermont _

41. Oregon
Washington
Idaho
California
Nevada

42. beans

green vegetables

spinach

lettuce

brussels sprouts.

2. Now cover the phrase at the left with an index card or piece of paper. Allow yourself only a 1-second exposure. Then,
using a pencil, check the one phrase to the right that makes a complete, sensible sentence. See how fast you can do this
exercise. Do not look back at the initial phrase when marking your answers. Check your accuracy on this part by
reviewing your work at a slower pace.

1. When the fox chased the hen,

a. since he was hungry

b. or he liked eggs

c. many feathers flew

d. and he stole a chick

2. Since the plane was shuddering,

3. The little red squirrel

4. When Claudia socked Tom,

5. Wherever the antelope ran,

6. In order to start a beer can collection,

7. If everything goes wrong,

8. Because Harold embarrasses the family,

9. When the waves became dangerous,

10. If those mushrooms we ate were actually
toadstools,

11. Because Marxism is only an ideal,

12. When she painted the “Little Princess,”

13. When the furry kitten meowed,

14. If she buys that new car,

a. with no landing gear

b. but was brand new

c. couldn’t take off

d. Matt circled to land

a. and found a bag of nuts

b. packed away his winter food supply

c. since he was a clever scavenger

d. with the nuts in his pouch

a. since she’s a tough woman

b. it was in her own self-defense

c. he is a weakling

d. because she dislikes him

a. and they got tired

b. in prairies of grass

c. the tigers pursued them

d. because they were afraid

a. Wayne had to do some searching

b. because he’s an alcoholic

c. to collect junk

d. because it’s a fun hobby

a. because you didn’t do it right

b. in order to fix it

c. about time to quit

d. you are apt to feel defeated

a. we keep him locked in the basement

b. if he would shut his mouth

c. since he’s our son

d. and he’s a real dope

a. because the canoe was tippy

b. and the winds were high

c. we got off the lake

d. if our boat tipped over

a. I have been poisoned

b. because we weren’t sure

c. when you make a mistake

d. if I can’t tell the difference

a. when the doctrine is changed

b. it cannot be put into absolute practice

c. if communism is powerful

d. belongs in the political process

a. because she is an artist

b. if it were her canvas

c. and she likes those colors

d. she was a beginning student

a. since it was hungry

b. because it was the runt

c. wants its mother

d. its mother caressed it

a. because she needs transportation

b. she can drive to work

c. and can’t pay the installment

d. since it’s a cash deal

15. Because the elevator jammed,

16. Since there was a blizzard,

17. If you pass the exam,

18. Since the Pine Mountains are so rough and
jagged,

19. When the 4th of July is celebrated,

20. When the dog lunged at Julie,

21. After Phillip won the pie-eating contest.

22. Since the bicycle has no brakes,

23. Just when spring seemed here for good,

24. When Harold put the cat out,

25. When the horses balked,

26. If my plant isn’t watered,

27. Whenever Charlie rewards Fang,

a. the passengers became acquainted

b. and everyone was scared

c. but remained for hours

d. as an emergency erupted

a. and it was all white out

b. when the snow plows were clearing roads

c. all schools and stores closed

d. if it ever stops

a. and got on the honor roll

b. because you’ll do well

c. or if the questions are too hard

d. you will certainly pass the course

a. but are hard to get across

b. we know they are a young formation

c. or mountain climbers go there

d. full of mountain goats

a. since everyone hangs out a flag

b. because children buy many sparklers

c. fireworks flash through the sky

d. because the nation’s birthday

a. she retreated in fright

b. since it was a vicious creature

c. and she was scared

d. because she was teasing him

a. since he is a glutton

b. but the lemon was better than the chocolate

c. he didn’t eat for a week

d. because he is obese

a. my brother couldn’t ride it

b. because it was old

c. and the seat was broken

d. if I could repair it

a. because it’s warm

b. there was a blizzard

c. since the flowers were up

d. if there was a frost

a. since it wanted out

b. whenever it meowed

c. because it likes the neighbor’s garage

d. it ran to its mate

a. when the lightning scared them

b. because they were nervous

c. since the fire frightened them

d. the cart swerved dangerously

a. because I’m leaving town

b. since it required a lot of care

c. it will shrivel up immediately

d. when it’s a dry climate

a. because he did a trick

b. he gives him a biscuit

c. but he’s a beggar

d. since he’s very fond of his pet

the “red flame” was in first position

28. After the race cars started out,

because the speed demons were careless

since I wanted “the flame” to win

while the field cars roared by

since I like to express my thoughts

29. Whenever I write a story,

it has a dramatic ending

when I recorded an event

but I misspell a lot of words

because it was too heavy

30. When the movers lifted the piano,

while we were busy packing

but it was very heavy

the keys fell out

3. Cover the sentences on the left with an index card or piece of paper. Allow yourself a 1-second exposure and then,
using a pencil, check the one word to the right that describes all the actions in each sentence. Check your answers by
reviewing your work at a slower pace.

planting

Once the hole was dug, Ceil lowered the seedling in and

burying

covered it with dirt.

watering

growing

oiling

John wiped the chain and then mended the links.

repairing

biking

breaking

crawling

The child went from the kitchen to the living room at a fast

shuffling

pace on all fours.

sliding

sneaking

presenting

Leo went back to the store and returned the sweater for

buying

one that was a size larger.

selling

exchanging

saving

Sonia tore out the check, signed it, and gave it to the clerk.

writing

buying

earning

stopping

The speeding car lurched to the left as the wheels angled

skidding

right.

crashing

braking

landing

Marc added full power, pulled back on the stick and watched

turning

the building grow smaller.

crashing

taking off

sliding

The boys tested the rope and then pulled themselves up

watching

onto the next rock.

jumping

climbing

fighting

9. After successfully countering the opposing viewpoints for an

teasing

hour, Jake saw that his plan was finally accepted.

persuading

lecturing

punishing

10. The coach threw a party for the winning team.

admiring

celebrating

competing

loving

11. The moment Kent saw the envelope, he closed his eyes in fear.

anticipating

developing

organizing

pick-pocketing

12. When the other players weren’t looking, Mark slipped an

punishing

extra card into the deck.

rebelling

cheating

walking

13. Sam gently twirled Joy by her arm, while moving his feet

observing

smoothly to the steady beat.

dancing

exercising

choosing

14. Sue carefully inspected the stock of soup cans, looking for

cleaning

the one with the red label.

smelling

eating

clapping

15. With a sudden spurt of energy Albert jumped up from the

cheering

side lines when the Bears scored.

addressing

acknowledging

fighting

16. After a pause the dog leaped in the direction of the scent

hunting

and pursued his prey.

playing

escaping

racing

17. Dick released the clip and jumped into a void of temporary

fleeing

weightlessness.

sky diving

skin diving

sewing

18. Sitting erect in her chair, Ericka pressed the switch and

singing

proceeded to tap the keys with phenomenal speed.

spelling

typing

eating

19. After the long drive, Mike put his feet up and head back.

driving

working

relaxing

shooting

20. John removed the barrel of the gun and turned the swab

cleaning

carefully inside the long steel tube.

aiming

destroying

21. Charles nailed the two boards together and then screwed

sawing

on the pulleys.

building

sanding

22. With great precaution the two boys slipped into the locked
store and ran away with a dozen new toasters.

a. stealing

b. visiting

c. borrowing

d. begging

23. With a damp rag Janet scrubbed the windows until they
sparkled in the sun.

a. opening

b. painting

c. washing

d. soaking

24. James studied the records so he could account for every
penny spent.

a. examining

b. neglecting

c. buying

d. cheating

25. Sue pierced the material with the sharp point and pulled
the thread through.

a. cutting

b. stitching

c. snapping

d. tearing

26. The teacher used her red pen to mark the exams.

a. noting

b. studying

c. constructing

d. grading

27. John dribbled the ball and then bounced it to his partner
so he could score the winning point.

a. practicing

b. teaming

c. listening

d. fighting

28. The two men battled the white water and then finally
found some flat water to leisurely paddle in.

a. motoring

b. cruising

c. canoeing

d. drifting

29. Tony adjusted the sights and crept slowly into range of
the target.

a. aiming

b. shooting

c. discharging

d. reloading

30. Sue totally disagreed and proceeded to do what she
wanted.

a. punishing

b. following

c. voting

d. rebelling

31. Mary reached Jon in time to tell him of the dangers she’d
discovered.

a. following

b. informing

c. confessing

d. searching

32. The farmer plowed his land in preparation for next year’s
crops.

a. harvesting

b. fertilizing

c. growing

d. cultivating

33. Joe’s older sister threatened to take his toys away if he didn’t
do what she said.

a. playing

b. sharing

c. asking

d. commanding

34. The troops withdrew from the front lines to reorganize.

a. escaping

b. deserting

c. retreating

d. liberating

rusting

35.

Droplets began to appear at the bottom of the thickly

leaking

crusted icicle.

melting

vaporizing

bouncing

36.

Bozo the clown is able to keep four dishes up in the air

juggling

for five minutes.

breaking

weighing

swimming

37.

David sprang from the board, raised his arms over his head,

jumping

and went into the water head first.

racing

diving

delivering

38.

Jimmy threw the rolled paper onto the door step as he

selling

pedalled past the house.

waving

playing

washing

39.

Mr. Fredericks hammered a spout into the tree and hung

building

a bucket from it.

tapping

emptying

4. Read the article below and try not to subvocalize. Placing your fingers lightly on your throat as you read will quickly
tell you if there is any movement there. Biting a pencil or chewing gum may help you overcome talking to yourself as
you read.

Stokes, William. “Love at First Grade,” Ship the Kids on Ahead .

Madison, Wisconsin, Forrest Publishing Co., 1968.

A special message this day to all of you out there
who have fallen in love with your first grade teacher.

I know how you suffer, fellows, and that there is
no comforting you.

But let me only say that what you are going
through is by no means a new affliction. It has been
around a long time.

Now you take Miss Rosenberg. Ah, boys there was
a woman for you. I loved her like no woman was ever
loved.

I’ll never forget the day she held my hand and
showed me how to make a small “a.” I could smell
her perfume and her hair tickled my ear, and, well, it
was just too much for me at that age and I bit her
elbow.

She apparently understood, because she looked at
me for a minute or two and then she smiled. Oh,
there was a woman. I get a shiver in my ribs to this

day if I get involved in a word with more than one
or two small “a’s.”

As the year wore on, I remember that Miss Rosen¬
berg and I grew closer to each other. Part of this was
because she caught me snapping a rubber band at
Lucy Caldwell and moved me up to the front desk.

This was all right with me, because it made it easier
for me to stare at her.

We had a little ritual we went through, Miss Rosen¬
berg and I. I would stare at her until she looked at me
and said, “Billie, will you please get at your work
now.”

Then I would pretend to read Dick and Jane, except
that I would pretend that it was Miss Rosenberg and
Billie instead of Dick and Jane. “See Miss Rosenberg
run. See Billie run. Run Miss ...”

I’m not sure when I fell out of love with Miss
Rosenberg, but it might have been about the time

first grade ended and I took up with a white rat that
my brother and I kept in an old canary cage.

Anyway, fellow first graders, try not to get too
involved with this older woman. The first thing you

know, she’ll be telling you to wash behind your ears
and to stuff your shirt-tail in; and, take it from me, a
fellow gets plenty of this sort of thing as he takes on
•more of life’s ballast.

Need more help in fighting your tendency to sub vocalize? There’s more practice on reading without subvocalizing in
Unit 2.

Now proceed to the Flexible reading and read the directions.

FLEXIBLE READING

Discussion. The Flexible reading differs from the previous two readings. We have varied the difficulty of it—some ar¬
ticles deal with technical subjects; others are more like newspaper editorials—to encourage you to be flexible. Having
flexibility is the key to efficient reading—not reading fast all the time, but adjusting your rate when the material calls for
it. And remembering to speed right back up when you can.

Directions. Read the Flexible article with the timer. You will not hear the audio metronome pacing tones, so be ready
to maintain your pace all on your own. The selection presents information on feet and foot care that is probably new to
you but will also probably interest you. Your two purposes for reading are: 1) to read as rapidly as you can, and 2) still be
assured that you can answer at least 7 of the 10 comprehension questions. Push the joystick button when you are ready to
read and again when you finish.

Galton, Lawrence. “Your Feet.” Reprinted courtesy of Popular Science ,
February, 1968, pp. 79-81, 196-97. © 1968 Popular Science Publishing Co., Inc.

Foot trouble hit the headlines recently — a nasty
business called “warm-water-immersion foot” which
has put troops in Vietnam out of action as effectively
as bullets. In one Mekong Delta operation, more
marines came down with it than were killed or
wounded.

It starts when calluses expand and contract pain¬
fully on water-soaked, wrinkled skin: boot friction
aggravates this, and soon the victim can’t walk.

Happily, medics have turned up a silicone ointment,
the same compound used as a lubricant in high-speed
drills, which when smeared on feet and socks is re¬
markably effective in preventing immersion foot.

Keeping feet in shape is not just a military problem.
Except for the common cold and tooth decay, no
human ailments are more prevalent than foot troubles.
As many as 80 percent of adults have one kind or
other in their lifetimes.

And experts say many, if not most, foot troubles
are needless, and are mistreated when they do occur.
Much of the $2 billion we spend annually on foot
powders, sprays, pads, supports, and potions to cor¬
rect foot ailments is wasted because of misinforma¬
tion and neglect.

Engineering masterpieces. In terms of anatomical
engineering, your feet are masterpieces — and they
have to be. When you stand, your feet carry the dead
weight of the body. Walk — and if you’re average,
you’ll walk some 65,000 miles in your lifetime — and
you jolt them with a force of hundreds of tons a day.
A 150-pound man walking a mile brings down on his
feet a total work load of 132 tons — 264,000 pounds.

Your feet have to absorb the impact of body
weight and keep the shock from traveling up the net¬
work of nerves and joints throughout the body.

In addition, they have to balance the body, propel
it, and, working against gravity, get blood flowing

back up the legs to the heart.

To accomplish all this, you have 52 bones in
your feet — one-fourth of the total number in the
body and — they’re encased in an intricate system of
some 200 ligaments, 40 muscles, and millions of mus¬
cle fibers and blood vessels.

Your biggest foot bone is the heel, one of the
seven tarsal bones; the other six tarsals arch in front
of it — and meet five long bones, the metatarsals,
whose heads make up the ball of the foot.

A major part of the body load is borne by bones
in the rear; the rest is spread among the long bones in
the forepart of the foot. When you walk, body weight
comes down on the heel but is quickly transferred to
the ball — and from there some goes to the toes
which, by their spreading action, prevent turning on
the ankles and aid in takeoff for the next step.

When something goes wrong with your feet, the
trouble isn’t necessarily confined there. Foot dis¬
comfort may cause a shift in gait or a change in pos¬
ture. Other parts of the body, including the spine,
may be thrown out of kilter to cause other troubles.
Some low back disturbances, joint complaints, even
headaches are being blamed on the feet.

Out of whack. About 99 percent of us are born
with perfect feet and manage to quickly acquire
trouble.

One recent study carried out in seven cities found
that 74 percent of children in elementary schools had
foot problems; by high school, 88 percent. Here’s
why. Throughout life the feet are subjected to the
stress of standing on hard surfaces. Man doesn’t do
enough walking, which is good for feet. “Standing,”
says Dr. Charles Turchin, a Washington, D.C. podia¬
trist and vice-president of the American Podiatry
Assn., “is a great enemy to the feet. It involves 100-
percent use; walking, only 50 percent use (in walk-

ing, one foot rests while the other supports weight).”

And shoes — poorly fitted and often designed for
the eyes, not the feet — also get blamed.

Dr. Henri L. DuVries, a foot specialist who has
examined many thousands of feet during the last
30 years, laments “man’s insistence on forcing a
square into a triangle.”

Suggests DuVries: “Slide a shoe off and look
straight down at your foot. The sides make roughly
parallel straight lines — even the front can be des¬
cribed more or less as a straight line running from big
to little toe somewhat like a piece of lumber sawed at
a right angle. But look at your shoes — more than
likely the toes are shaped like triangles.

“Only when we clothe our feet with shoes do we
begin to worry about corns, calluses, ingrown nails,
hammer toes, bunions, and other foot ailments,” Du¬
Vries says.

The myths. We’re surrounded by foot myths. They
range from the idea that many foot troubles stem
from wearing sneakers in childhood (not really harm¬
ful) to wearing loafers which are supposed to be bad
because they let the feet spread. “Undoubtedly, the
foot will grow somewhat larger and wider if not re¬
stricted by ill-shaped shoes, but this is healthy,”
says one authority.

The biggest misconceptions center around flat feet
and fallen arches. Because the Army during World
War II rejected thousands of men with flat feet, the
idea that there’s something inevitably wrong with
them persists.

Dr. Dudley Morton, one of the nation’s outstanding
investigators of the foot, says many people with
arches “as flat as pancakes” never have experienced
foot pain, while some of the most painful and obsti¬
nate cases involve feet with well-formed arches.

According to some authorities, only one out of
1,000 persons with flat feet has pain because his feet
are flat. The best bet for the flat-footed person, and
anyone else with a painful foot problem for which
there is no clear-cut, obvious cause, is to get advice
and treatment from a physician or podiatrist rather
than to keep buying arch supports.

Here are some common foot problems, though,
which authorities say can be corrected with simple
remedies:

For feet that just ache. All that may be needed is
rest and elevation — as much of both as possible —
and washing in cold water with an antiseptic soap
followed by a sponging with rubbing alcohol.

Excessive sweating. This often can be helped sim¬
ply with rubbing alcohol and foot powder — applied
especially between the toes.

Calluses. On the balls of the feet or tops of the
toes, calluses usually come from badly fitted shoes.
For lasting relief the shoes must be changed. If the

callus is thick, a physician or podiatrist can speed its
disappearance by careful paring (something not to be
done by yourself).

Heel discomfort. Some physicians recommend
nightly soaks in hot water containing Epsom salts and
use of a heel pad with a hole at the point of greatest
discomfort.

Painful heel problems. These are common among
policemen and others whose jobs require much stand¬
ing or walking. Dr. Paul W. Lapidus of New York, an
orthopedist, reports that patients respond readily to
medical treatments.

Bunions. This is bursitis of the big toe, caused by
tight shoes that press on the toe joint and the bursa,
a little fluid-filled sac in the joint. The joint becomes
inflamed — and the metatarsal bone becomes mis¬
shapen. “Bunion-last” shoes, made wide through the
forefront section, may help. Surgery is sometimes re¬
quired.

Hammer toe. Also called claw toe, this is another
deformity that can be caused by poorly fitted shoes.
It leads to undue pressure and corn formation. While
severe cases may require surgical correction, conserva¬
tive treatment — which includes use of corn plasters,
new and well-fitted shoes, and toe-stretching — often
offers relief.

Plantar warts. These common warts that develop
on the soles of the feet and then are flattened by
pressure can be exquisitely tender. Sometimes they
yield to medication. Recently, Dr. Bernard E. Tropp,
a Newark, N.J., Health Department podiatrist, has
reported promising results with ultrasonic waves in
eliminating plantar warts.

Athlete's foot. Much that passes for athlete’s foot
really isn’t. Real athlete’s foot is a fungus infection
called tinea pedis and ringworm. It often can be licked
with a special antifungal antibiotic.

In many cases of athlete’s foot, moisture from
excessive sweating and the maceration of the skin it
produces may be more important sources of inflam¬
mation than funguses. To combat the moisture and
maceration problem, doctors prescribe thorough dry¬
ing between the toes after bathing, rubbing away of
the macerated skin, and routine use of a drying pow¬
der (either zinc stearate or a combination of zinc
stearate and zinc oxide with talc).

Allergic reactions to shoe materials can cause what
seems to be athlete’s foot. Nonallergic shoes may
clear this up.

Chronic corns. Friction and pressure cause a corn
to develop. Corn plasters may provide some relief —
and, if the friction and pressure came from badly
fitted shoes, a change of shoes may solve the problem.

But in many cases of recurring corns, the cause is
a bone deformity — a bony growth that produces
trouble by rubbing against the underside of the skin

during walking.

Dr. Milton Roven, a podiatrist at Linden General
Hospital, Brooklyn, N.Y., reports a simple surgical
procedure to correct the bone deformity. It involves
making a small incision near the bony growth, insert¬
ing a tiny rasp, and literally filing away the offending
bone. The procedure can be carried out in a podia¬
trist’s office and the patient can resume walking
immediately with little or no pain.

Avoiding trouble. Most common foot troubles can
be prevented from happening in the first place — or
from recurring.

Good shoes properly fitted are essential to foot
health. Buy them late in the afternoon; your feet
will be bigger then. Don’t tell the salesman your
size; let him measure. Make certain the shoes are wide
enough to accommodate the widest part of your foot
and that there is room to extend your toes fully.

What should you look for in a good shoe? Soft

upper, moderately broad heel, narrow waist, straight
border along the inner sole. Socks should be a quarter-
inch longer than the longest toe. If you perspire a lot,
wool or cotton is preferable to synthetic material.

Tips on foot care. Clip toenails straight across — no
rounding of the corners — to minimize any chance of
ingrown nails. Bathe your feet daily and dry com¬
pletely with a terry-cloth towel.

Don’t monkey with your feet. If any kind of
trouble pops up and persists for more than a few
days, do what you’d sensibly do if the trouble were
in an arm or the throat or the chest: Get professional
help to diagnose it and treat it before it can get worse.

It was Abraham Lincoln who once complained:
“When my feet hurt, I can’t think.” Enough is known
today so that with a little forethought your feet
aren’t likely to hurt — and, if the foot doctors are
right, you’ll be less likely to hurt elsewhere.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

Answer the questions without looking back at the selection. Check your work in the Answer Key and record your
scores in the Success Log Box.

1. Which is more common among human ailments than foot problems?

a. broken bones

b. soft gums

c. common colds

d. hayfever

2. The author mentions several reasons why the feet must be engineering masterpieces.
Which of the following did he not mention?

a. They must coordinate the movement of multiple bones, joints, and muscles.

b. They must support the entire weight of the body.

c. They must absorb the great impact when a person walks or runs.

d. They must get the blood flowing back up to the heart.

3. What fraction of your body’s bones are in your feet?

a. 1/8

b. 1/4

c. 1/10

d. 1/12

4. The most critical outcome of foot discomfort is

a. blisters and bunions

b. a shift in gait or posture

c. migraine headaches

d. mental anxiety

5. Standing is harder on feet than walking because

a. feet need exercise to stimulate circulation

b. pressure on the transverse arch is extreme

c. people who stand still are usually overweight

d. it involves constant 100% use

6. Dr. Henri L. DuVries comments on

a. the fact that wearing moccasins causes flat feet

b. the sneakers-to-loafers syndrome

c. designing shoes to save money

d. forcing square tipped feet into triangular shaped shoes

7. According to the author, excessive sweating can be helped by

a. wearing lighter socks or sandals

b. using rubbing alcohol and powder

c. washing in cold water and using antiseptic soap

d. wearing well-fitting shoes

8. Athlete’s foot

a. can be caught in any locker room

b. is actually an allergic reaction to shoe material

c. is caused by sweating and maceration of skin

d. is a fungus infection or ringworm

9. Shoes should be bought in late afternoon because

a. your feet will be more tired and thus sensitive to any future shoe problems

b. that’s when your feet are the biggest

c. your circulation will be at its peak

d. your sales resistance to fashionable but uncomfortable shoes will be high

10. Why should toenails be clipped straight across?

a. to minimize chances of ingrown nails

b. to reduce the occurrence of hangnails

c. to facilitate keeping them clean and trimmed

d. to reduce friction between the toes

SUCCESS LOG FLEXIBLE READING

READING SPEED _ WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE_%

(10 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

READING PROGRESS GRAPH

UNIT 1

Directions

READING EFFICIENCY INDEX.

1. Refer to the three Unit 1 Success Log Boxes and enter in the computer your three reading rates and three comprehen¬
sion scores, as the screen directs.

2. Record your Unit 1 REI above and on the REI Record page in the back of your Workbook.

3. Press to load the Reading Progress Graph. While the graph loads, read “Picking Up Speed” below.

PICKING UP SPEED

You should have a feeling of accomplishment! One unit is completed. Probably the most difficult one in the book for
you, because you had so many new things to remember. Both facts and procedures.

Throughout the units, of course, you’ll be learning new facts and new techniques. That’s an important part of
becoming a fast, skilled reader.

But the unfamiliar procedures will soon become second nature. You’ll be able to take them for granted and concen¬
trate on improving your skills. Until you get comfortable with them, don’t feel awkward. Good reading habits can be
quickly formed.

You can make it easier by forming the habit of doing the units regularly, as we suggested. Keep all your materials
together so you don’t have to waste time hunting. Pick a reasonably quiet place and time when you won’t be inter¬
rupted. And set to work immediately. With enthusiasm.

Use your time actively—to pick up speed. And remember how much time you’ll save later. By reading twice as fast.
The ATARI way.

Helpful Hint: Choose a light, recreational book you enjoy and keep it handy as you work in each unit. It can be a
great way to get extra reading practice on easy material. Pick it up when you have a few minutes in between the exer¬
cises.

Enter your Pretest and Unit 1 REI’s
in your Workbook.) Press Q3S23

when the screen prompts you to do so. (Obtain these from the REI Record page
after each entry.

Press

START

to view your graph.

UNIT

MAKING MORE PROGRESS

• To begin Unit 2 complete the steps in the STARTING UP section.

• Be sure you have inserted Cassette 1 with Side 2 up.

• After listening to the audio segment, turn to the Warm-up exercise and read the directions.

WARM-UP EXERCISE

Directions. The Warm-up exercise is similar to the first one you did, only the words may be slightly longer. Also, after
the Reading Window moves to the right, it will stay stationary and the words will appear in the window.

Your beginning Reading Window Rate for Unit 1 was 60. Try increasing it to 90 this time. Remember, the purpose of
this exercise is to get going and concentrating. Challenge yourself on it as much as you can.

Enter your RWR when the Warm-up screen appears and press the joystick button to start. Record your results below.

WARM UP EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY MINUTES _

SCORE _

SECOND TRY MINUTES _

SCORE _

Note: Record the tape counter setting in the space provided at the beginning of the Phrase-reading exercise.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

Press Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. Keep in mind that you want to limit your subvocalization and respond to more words and ideas at one
time. But focus mainly on grasping the material as fast as you can. Your increased concentration will be a great assistance
in improving your reading ability. And don’t forget to think positively!

Directions. Remember! The purpose of the Phrase-reading exercise is to help you read at speeds you might have dif¬
ficulty initiating on your own. Let the Reading Window push you. When the screen appears, set your rate 50 words per
minute faster than you did in Unit 1 and try to keep up. You want to read at a rate fast enough to not allow you to mentally
pronounce each word or go back and recheck material. Push the joystick button to start. Record your results below when
you finish.

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY READING SPEED _

SECOND TRY READING SPEED _

WPM

Note: Record the tape counter setting in the space provided at the beginning of the Paced reading.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

Keeping Up The Pace

PACED READING

Tape Counter Setting.

Directions. If you scored right answers to at least 7 out of 10 questions for the Paced and Timed readings in Unit 1,
you’re ready to increase your speed on this exercise. Set your beginning tones-per-minute rate at 120. Again, if this pace
seems slower than the one you achieved on the previous Timed reading, increase it right away. If it seems about the
same, make a modest increase in the tpm rate, for example, push the joystick forward once.

If you scored fewer than 7 out of 10 questions correct, you probably need a little more practice at the same rate. So,
start with the same beginning tpm rate (100) as you did last time. Don’t be discouraged. The important thing in these first
lessons is to strike a balance—one that permits you to read faster and faster while remembering the important facts. With
a little practice, you can do it. Be sure to increase the tpm rate while you are reading, if the pace seems too comfortable!
Try to match each eye stop with the sound of a tone.

You’re going to read “Bermuda Triangle: Mystery or Myth?” Through reading, you’ll explore some mysterious hap¬
penings at sea. Try to get the facts so you can answer correctly at least 7 of the 10 questions that follow. As usual, record
your rate and comprehension score. Don’t look back at the article when you’re answering the questions. When the Paced
reading screen appears, press the joystick button to begin and again when you finish.

Marx, Robert. “The Bermuda Triangle: Mystery or Myth?”

Argosy , February, 1974, pp. 52, 54-55.

Legends concerning this area go far back into the
misty past. Carthaginian mariners as early as 530 B.C.
are reported to have discovered the Sargasso Sea, a
large area of ocean between Bermuda and the Baha¬
mas. They noted that the sea there was carpeted with
floating seaweed which caught ships and held them
fast until they rotted or sank. This belief was still
part of mariner’s lore as late as the 19th century.
Columbus, on his first voyage, wrote that in this
same area he saw “a remarkable bolt of fire fall into
the sea ...” and that his men were terrified by the
baffling disturbance of the ship’s compass. Other
early seafarers reported that sea monsters and giant
whirlpools pulled hapless vessels to the bottom.

Today there are still many who continue to feel
there is something mysterious about the Bermuda
Triangle and who do not accept the fact that the dis¬
appearances are attributable to natural causes. Count¬
less theories have been offered, some quite bizarre.
According to Norman Slater of Kenosha, Wisconsin,
who claims extraordinary powers of ESP, there are
three “hot spots,” all within a 20-mile radius off the
Florida coast, which he has located. Any vessel or
plane passing over them will be sucked down into the
depths of the Gulf Stream and become trapped in a
time machine — a sort of funnel that holds them in
an invisible dimension before suddenly releasing
them. Others have expounded a similar theory, es¬
pecially flying saucer buffs, who feel that the whole
Triangle may be a sort of collecting basin of human
specimens for creatures from other worlds.

Over the past five years I have been especially

interested in the Bermuda Triangle. I have flown hun¬
dreds of hours in many types of planes and spent
more than a year aboard boats while searching for
shipwrecks in this area. In the course of my investiga¬
tion I have interviewed scores of persons — sea cap¬
tains, sailors, airline pilots and navigators, anyone
who might shed light on the mysterious, puzzling
losses in this notorious area. In most cases I found
the disappearances turned out to be not so mys¬
terious after all but the result of human error or the
area’s unique environmental features.

Of the many large ships which have disappeared in
the Triangle, none has received so much public atten¬
tion as the 19,000-ton Navy supply ship, Cyclops. On
March 4, 1918, the 500-foot ship, laden with a cargo
of manganese ore and 309 passengers and crew, sailed
from Barbados for Norfolk, Virginia — and was never
heard from again. Then, in 1940, two of the Cyclops ’
sister ships were sold to a private company and used
to carry bauxite from the Virgin Islands to the U.S.
The two vessels, Nereus and Proteus , after several
trips, both vanished somewhere in the Triangle during
November and December of 1941. Since the Cyclops
disappeared during WWI and her two sister ships on
the eve of WWII — at a time when German submarines
were already prowling those waters — many believe
that all three ships were torpedoed, although German
Naval Archives have no record of this. It must be
remembered that many ships are lost in war time and
the facts concealed. Perhaps the submarine destroying
the Cyclops was itself sunk before reporting and if the
other two ships had been torpedoed before the U.S.

entered the war the Germans would certainly have
kept silent.

It may be that these three ships and others which
have disappeared over the years fell victim to the
ravages of nature. According to a spokesman for
Lloyds of London, more than a hundred large ships
are lost each year in bad storms throughout the
world: some capsize due to shifting cargo and others
simply break up in rough seas. Single mountainous
seas, called freak waves, have been known to engulf
large ships. Not much is known about these mon¬
strous waves, some of which have been more than 100
feet high. Off Japan they are believed to be the re¬
sult of underwater volcanic activity which is not
known to occur in the area of the Bermuda Triangle.
However, in 1954 such a freak wave accounted for
the loss of the freighter Mormackite , which sank
further north, off Cape Henry, Virginia. According
to several lucky survivors, an enormous wave caught
their vessel on its beam, rolling it over and sinking it
in less than one minute.

This is an example of how a ship can disappear
without sending a distress message. According to
many experienced pilots and mariners there are areas
in the Bahamas and elsewhere in the Atlantic known
as “dead spots” where radio communications are
virtually impossible. I have experienced this strange
phenomenon myself many times while working in the
Bahamas.

It is true that when a large vessel like a freighter or
tanker sinks, many objects float free and telltale oil
slicks usually mark the scene of the disaster. The fact
that debris, bodies and oil slicks are rarely sighted in
the Triangle can be attributed to the extremely swift
and turbulent Gulf Stream and other ocean currents
which can quickly erase evidence of a catastrophe.
Sharks and other ocean predators could account for
the scarcity of bodies. It should be borne in mind
that many of these alleged disappearances occurred
when the position of the vessel or plane wasn’t known
within hundreds or even thousands of miles, putting
the search efforts in the same category as looking for
the needle in a haystack.

Another well known ship disappearance was that
of the Marine Sulphur Queen , a 554-foot tanker carry¬
ing a cargo of molten sulphur from Beaumont, Texas
to Norfolk. Her last known position was off the
Florida Keys on the night of February 3, 1963.
According to all accounts written since then, she van¬
ished without a trace under baffling circumstances.
The fact is, however, that several weeks after her loss
a board bearing her name drifted ashore on Key
Biscayne. The badly splintered piece of wood proved
the ship had been ripped apart by a violent explosion.
Some experts think the ship may have been struck by
lightning; others feel the blast was touched off when

sea water came in contact with the 370-degree molten
sulphur in her tanks.

The news media has often been guilty of gross sen¬
sationalism when vessels or aircraft have disappeared
anywhere in the Triangle. Several such instances have
occurred recently. The disappearance of four teen¬
agers on a flight in a light plane from Orlando,
Florida to the Bahamas was covered in the interna¬
tional press. However, when the plane was accidental¬
ly found by a fisherman in a shallow lake near Orlan¬
do and examination determined it had crashed short¬
ly after takeoff, the story was published in local
papers but ignored by all others.

About the same time papers all over the country
referred to the “Devil’s Triangle” and the “Bermuda
Triangle” in stories relating the disappearance of an
American fishing boat and the discovery of two
Cuban fishing boats found burning near one another
on the Great Bahama Bank. When the full story was
unravelled by the Coast Guard it was only printed in
Florida papers, leaving readers in other areas with an
unexplained mystery. It turned out that the Cuban
boats had been attacked by a Cuban exile group and
set afire after their crews were cast adrift in life rafts.
These were later rescued by passing vessels. In retalia¬
tion for this attack, Castro ordered his patrol boats to
seize American vessels and the fishing boat was one of
those captured.

Many small boats have disappeared; the majority of
them ran afoul of severe weather and human ignor¬
ance and error. The unpredictable Caribbean-Atlantic
weather pattern, which includes sudden heavy squalls
and deadly waterspouts, probably accounts for most
of them. Each year hundreds of small pleasure craft
make crossings between Florida and the Bahamas,
often without radios or life-saving equipment. Fool¬
hardy, unprepared sailors account for many of the
search and rescue missions of the Miami Coast Guard
unit. In a five-month period last year while I was in
the area salvaging a shipwreck, more than two dozen
small boats appeared on our site and announced they
were lost, and in most cases either low on gas or out
of it. In one case the boat captain had never been on
the open sea before and didn’t even have a compass or
a navigation chart aboard. He thought he was still on
the Florida coast, when in fact he was in the Bahamas
and more than 40 miles from any land. If we hadn’t
been there to assist him and others that turned up,
they might well have drifted into the open Atlantic,
never been heard from again and become part of the
mysterious “Devil’s Triangle” legacy.

Among all the disappearances of small vessels, I
have found only two that can be classified as truly
baffling. The first was in 1957 when the well-known
publisher Harvey Conover and his wife, making a trip
between Key West and Miami, disappeared within

sight of Miami aboard their yacht Renouoc. The only
explanation is that they either struck a submerged
object, such as a reef, or were run down by a large
ship. Even so, searchers who arrived on the scene
within hours after they were last reported seen should
have found some floating debris.

The other puzzling case occurred in 1967. Two
local residents went out in a 23-foot cabin cruiser to
see the Miami skyline by night. At nine p.m. the local
Coast Guard unit received a call from the skipper who
said he had damaged both propellers on a submerged
object and needed a tow back to port, but was in no
danger. Eighteen minutes later the Coast Guard cutter
arrived at the given position, which was only a mile
offshore and near a channel buoy, but the boat was
gone. In addition to having built-in flotation cham¬
bers, floating cushions and life preservers had been on
the boat. No trace of the Witchcraft , as she was
ironically called, or of her two passengers, was ever
discovered.

In the past 25 years at least 10 small vessels have
been found adrift in the Triangle without a soul
aboard, and endless explanations have been offered
ranging from the passengers being kidnapped by UFOs
to being grabbed by giant sea monsters. On six of
these boats there was but one person aboard and the
most logical explanation is that he either fell over¬
board or committed suicide. However, this happens
all over the world and, in July of 1969 alone, five
unmanned boats were found in the vicinity of the
Azores, an area far out of the infamous Triangle.

Most of the frequent articles about the Bermuda
Triangle give great attention to the loss of five TBM
Avengers and a PBM Mariner search plane in 1945,
which were lost with 27 men under alleged mys¬
terious circumstances. All popular versions of this
incident, which has gained the stature of a myth, bear
a striking resemblance to each other, and it appears
that authors have borrowed from and embellished
upon a single source rather than researched the actual
incident.

These accounts state that on December 5, 1945,
five Avengers with experienced pilots at the controls
took off from the Fort Lauderdale Naval Air Station
in beautiful weather on a routine patrol flight. Two
hours later when they were supposed to return to
base the flight leader in a panic-stricken voice
radioed: “We cannot be sure where we are. We are
lost. We can’t find west. Everything looks strange.”
Within minutes a Mariner Flying Boat was sent out
to find the lost planes. Nothing was ever heard from
any of them again. A massive search failed to find any
traces of the planes or their crews and this famous
episode became one of the most baffling in the annals
of aviation history. In a recent television special on
the Bermuda Triangle, this event played the main

role.

From study of official records and interviews with
men who were involved in the case, I have been able
to learn the real story. The flight was not a routine
patrol but rather a training flight, and only the flight
leader had considerable flying experience. Before the
flight took off he asked to be replaced and it is
thought he might have been sick or possibly intoxi¬
cated. A replacement couldn’t be found, so he had to
fly. The weather was far from good; winds between
20 and 30 knots were blowing, the skies were cloudy
and visibility was poor. The first leg of the flight took
them over Cay Sal Bank, between the Florida Keys
and Cuba. They were then supposed to fly to the
Bahamas before returning home. Throughout the
flight they were in communication with the tower
in Fort Lauderdale and the conversations were heard
by a number of persons in the control tower.

About the time they should have been approaching
the base, the flight leader was heard to say that he
thought they were lost and probably in the Gulf of
Mexico, but several of the other pilots argued that
they thought they were over the Bahamas. However,
the instructor ordered them to fly east to reach
Florida. After an hour, one of the pilots was heard
saying: “Damn, if we would just fly west we could
home.” The leader reluctantly agreed, but when they
failed to find land again, he once more changed their
course to the east. By the time radio directional
finders were used to find the approximate location of
the planes, radio communications had worsened: the
tower could monitor conversations between the pilots
but their transmissions were not reaching the planes.
Thus, the planes flew back and forth to the east and
west, but apparently not long enough on their west
headings to find land. When the first plane reported
only 10 gallons of fuel left, the leader ordered them
to all ditch together. This was the last heard from the
planes which were then about 130 miles southeast of
New Smyrna, Florida. At the time the planes ditched,
the British tanker Viscount Empire passing through
the area reported that she had encountered tremen¬
dous seas and winds of high velocity. This would
account for the disintegration of the planes upon
impact and lack of traces of wreckage or bodies.

The Mariner search plane took off from the Naval
Air Station at Banana River near Cape Canaveral at
7:27 p.m., when it was already dark and the
Avengers were known to have ditched. Twenty
minutes later she suddenly disappeared off the radar
screens at the airbase. A tanker, S.S. Gaines Mills ,
steaming in the same area where the plane was known
to have been, reported that the captain and others
saw the plane explode in the air and crash into the
sea. The Mariners were nicknamed “the flying gas
tanks” and apparently this one had an inflight fire

which caused the explosion.

The facts surrounding the mysterious disappear¬
ance of another flight of planes has recently come to
light. According to many accounts, five Air Force
bombers took off from Bermuda on their way to
Europe in 1944 and were never heard from again.
Dick Stern of Atlanta, Georgia, wrote Argosy after
reading an article which appeared in the magazine
about this, giving his account of the event which gibes
with information I got from the Air Force. Actually,
a flight of seven bombers was involved and Stern was
on one of them. They were about 300 miles east of
Bermuda (not even in the Triangle) on a beautiful
clear night, when “we were suddenly whipped over
on our backs, found ourselves on the ceiling one
moment and pinned down the next, as the plane was
thrown about at a tremendous rate of speed. By the
time the pilot pulled the plane out of its dive, the
prop wash was creating white caps on the water
below.” Only Stern’s plane and one other made it
back to Bermuda and the others were assumed to
have crashed into the sea.

A similar incident happened on November 4, 1970
when a giant Pan American 747, climbing through
clear skies after a takeoff from Kennedy International
Airport, suddenly encountered severe turbulence in
clear air. The plane was buffeted about like a feather,
losing 5,000 feet of altitude and causing injuries to a
number of passengers. Although it isn’t possible to
obtain statistics from commercial airlines as to the
frequency of these occurrences — known at CAT or
clear air turbulence — it is believed to be a major
factor in the disappearance of planes without a trace
in the Bermuda Triangle.

Unfortunately the sea is vast and there are seldom
witnesses to attest to the manner in which vessels and
airplanes are lost. Quite a few small private planes

have disappeared in the Triangle. The most puzzling
loss occurred in April 1962. The Nassau control
tower picked up a call from a twin-engine Apache
approaching the field from the direction of Great
Abaco island. Although there was a cloudless sky, the
pilot acted as if he were in a dense fog, repeatedly
requesting direction while unable to determine his
own position. After several urgent exchanges radio
contact was lost and one wing of his plane was found
the same day about twenty miles from Nassau.
Apparently his compass and possibly other instru¬
ments had gone haywire, but the bewildering thing
is that he was certainly in sight of Nassau when he
reported being lost and should have been able to
make a safe approach

A commercial airline pilot with 30 years experience
believes that many planes, especially those with only
one person aboard, are lost when the pilot becomes a
victim of aerial hypnosis, also known as “white out.”
This might happen when the sea is flat calm and the
limpid blue water blends in so well with the clear
blue sky that no horizon or line of definition is dis¬
cernible. Psychologically the sea becomes just another
area of space, and the pilot may become relaxed or
experience mental narcosis so that he drifts off course
and flies until his fuel is expended or he augurs into
the sea thinking he is high in the sky.

Finally, weather conditions account for a number
of small plane losses, especially during the summer
months when severe squalls are frequent off the east
coast of Florida and in the western Bahamas. In this
area waterspouts are common and have destroyed un¬
known numbers of planes. In addition, winds as high
as 130 knots have been recorded in the vicinity of
waterspouts and could easily disintegrate a plane or
boat.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

Don’t look back to the selection to answer the questions. Record your rate and comprehension score in the Success Log
Box.

1. The Carthaginian Mariners noted that the Sargasso Sea

a. was blood-colored

b. was covered with floating seaweed

c. contained many violent whirlpools

d. was swept by huge waves in certain areas only

2. How is the Bermuda Triangle regarded today?

a. There are still many who think it is shrouded in mystery.

b. Mariners laugh at the ancient legends and enjoy spinning yarns about such strange
beliefs.

c. Scientists believe the area is influenced by vibrations from outer space.

d. Scientists have discovered there is a scientific reason for the behavior of the waters.

3. Of the many large ships disappearing in the Triangle, which one received the most public attention?

a. Norfolk

b. Cyclops

c. Nereus

d. Proteus

4. What have many pilots and mariners observed in the Bahamas and elsewhere in the Atlantic?

a. a number of unmanned crafts

b. extremely sudden, violent storms

c. strange underwater volcanic activity

d. areas where radio communications are virtually impossible

5. Which of the following was not mentioned as occurring when a disappearance took place?

a. a war was going on

b. a violent storm was ravaging the area

c. the vessel was in a “dead spot”

d. trade winds were blowing away debris

6. The author attributes the majority of small craft disappearances in the Triangle to

a. unexplainable phenomena

b. human error in judgment

c. actuarial odds regarding seagoing crafts

d. extraterrestrial influences

7. Of all the small craft disappearances, which of the following does the author feel is one
of the most baffling?

a. the explosion of the Cuban fishing craft

b. the total disappearance of the New Bedford whaling yacht

c. the ironic case of the Witchcraft

d. the apparent torpedoing of a Miami-based pleasure craft in peacetime

8. What really happened to the Avengers?

a. The pilots got lost and ditched.

b. The planes’ compasses were strangely affected.

c. They got caught in a bad storm.

d. Enemy planes intercepted them.

9. What happened to the Mariner search plane?

a. It crashed on takeoff.

b. It ran into bad weather.

c. It blew up over the sea.

d. It hit some “clear air turbulence.”

10. What theory does one pilot offer regarding some strange plane disappearances in or near
the Triangle?

a. Water spouts cause planes to go off course.

b. The air contains innumerable pockets of clear air turbulence.

c * Unusual barometric pressure in certain pockets causes pilots to black out.
d. Pilots experience a “white out ” and become confused as to where the sky
ends and the sea begins.

SUCCESS LOG PACED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(10 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

Right On Time

TIMED READING

Directions. Now you get another chance to read fast with the Audio Metronome Pacer. This intriguing article, “New
Office/’ is very different from the one you just read, but it’s easy reading. Again, you’ll have 10 factual questions to
answer when you’re done, so remember the important facts. Set your tpm rate as you did for the Paced reading. Press the
joystick button to begin and again when you finish. Be sure to record your rate and comprehension scores in the Success
Log Box.

Hope, Frank L., Jr. “New Office.” Reprint courtesy Sky Magazine, November, 1973, pp. 5,
7-8, 11, as carried aboard Delta Air Lines. © 1973 East/West Network, Inc.

A major American corporation recently decided to
build its new, multi-million dollar international head¬
quarters out in the country, away from the hustle
and bustle of the city. But before the company ever
moved in, the bottom dropped out of its particular
industry, and it found itself stuck with a white ele¬
phant it could neither sell nor lease.

Another firm built its new headquarters without
due consideration for proper sound insulation. High-
priced executives discovered to their horror that all
their confidential meetings could be clearly heard in
the hallway — and that every ping of the secretaries’
typewriters came through just as loudly.

Another company rented offices in a new building
without bothering to think about the arrangement of
individual office suites. One man who needed to be
in constant touch with the production office found
himself on the wrong floor; an accountant who
needed solitude found himself next to the typing
pool; a senior vice president was located next to the
washroom.

There are a great many disgruntled companies and
executives around today who might be happier if they
had bothered to think clearly about the offices they
were in the process of building or renting.

Why build or rent new space at all? Corporate
image is the main reason. It is almost impossible to
find a dynamic, expanding company that is mired in
old, unattractive offices. A company’s own self-image
is almost as important as the success of the company’s
work. It influences customers and clients, and it
determines the morale of employees. Regardless of
the size of a company, when it gets to be successful
it should begin thinking about purchasing or renting
office space that reflects its recently achieved position
of success.

Site location is an initial and crucial consideration.
Is there enough access, both via private automobile
and public transportation for employees and cus¬
tomers? Is the area one in which future growth is
planned, or are you simply making a multi-million
dollar bet that at some undetermined point in the
distant future your company will be in the center of
a vital community?

Lack of careful attention to site planning happens

more often than you’d expect. A suburban location,
for example, forces a company to rely on private
transportation to bring its employees and customers
to it. This is perfectly acceptable as long as there are
cars — and gasoline to power them. But with the gas
shortage, and with the proposed Environmental Pro¬
tection Agency regulations, exclusive reliance on pri¬
vate transportation may put a company in a bind a
few years from now.

At the same time, a suburban location may cut
employees off from the shops and services which they
might otherwise patronize during the lunch hour.
Employee dissatisfaction can lead to employee turn¬
over — and that can cost a company a great deal of
money.

One company located so far away from such
commonplace things as restaurants that it found itself
forced to operate a first-class, but very expensive,
employee cafeteria. And when its executives went to
lunch with executives from other companies, they
found themselves spending as much as two or three
hours away from the office. That kind of inefficiency
is unnecessary and inexcusable.

A central city location has the benefits of low-cost
public transportation, but it also has the drawback of
traffic congestion. With the growing inner-city trend
towards one-way streets, many executives (and em¬
ployees and customers) find that they must travel
two blocks down and two blocks across just to be
able to enter on the other side of their building.
Planning can avoid that.

A suburban location offers opportunities for a
“college park” type of setup, allowing for future
horizontal growth. But the future may also bring
higher municipal taxes not anticipated in the original
budget.

Each of these factors, and many more, ought to be
considered by the team responsible for your new
offices. Members of the team must include the archi¬
tect, a realtor if more than one company is going to
occupy your building, and top executives of your
company.

In far too many instances the architect meets only
with lower- and middle-level employees of the com¬
pany, employees who do not, and often cannot, pro-

perly translate the top executives’ thoughts for the
architect. The end result is a building that does not
meet the wishes of the company, nor its needs.

Let’s take an example. Do you want your building
to be a glamorous, image-making structure, the kind
that gets written up in the architectural magazines?
Or do you want a straight-forward, utilitarian build¬
ing? With an “image” building, a rule of thumb might
be that each square foot of floor space will cost, say,
$60. With the utilitarian building, the costs might run
around $30 per square foot. Top company executives
ought to work closely with the architect to find the
“comfort zone” that balances their needs and their
budget.

A realtor is a necessary part of the team because
he knows (or should know) all factors affecting the
future of the site. Many companies today are stuck
with a lot of land because they did not anticipate
community goals. Most new buildings today are
planned for metropolitan areas that don’t currently
meet the various clean air standards. The buildings
are designed with a reliance on the automobile; yet
EPA guidelines may well make it impossible to build
garage space for the structure. No garage space, no
cars; no cars, no people. It’s amazing how many
people don’t know about the EPA and its rulings. In
California, for example, new clean air standards may
reduce public parking by as much as 20 percent in the
future. That automatically forces a reliance on public
transportation. But if there is no public transporta¬
tion, a building that has been structured around the
auto is sure to suffer.

One downtown area that nicely balances a reliance
on the private car with an availability of public trans¬
portation is Atlanta’s. Peachtree Street has a healthy
concentration of hotels and offices, parking and dif¬
ferent modes of public transit.

A careful analysis of a building itself is crucial if
the company is to be satisfied. The cost of land and
the cost of construction must be matched against the
efficiency of the building. A good rule of thumb is an
80 percent efficiency ratio — 80 percent of the build¬
ing’s floor space devoted to work space, 20 percent
devoted to elevators, hallways, etc. A smaller com¬
pany should be aware that the traditional square¬
shaped building might be right for it; a larger firm
which needs large open spaces might find itself satis¬
fied with a rectangular building and an off-center
core. This would allow it enough space for a “bull¬
pen” area in which to house such operations as the
typing pool and shipping room. These factors should
be carefully investigated before construction begins.
The alternative is corporate unhappiness and added
costs.

If you’re going into a high-rise building, you should
look at what’s known as “vertical circulation” — the

ease with which people can move up and down via
the elevators. Many U.S. buildings are under-eleva-
tored. The reason is that elevators cost money, and
use up rentable space; and the result is often long¬
term unhappiness.

If you’re building, you and your architect might
consider staggered elevators, some local, some express
to the upper floors. More than one company execu¬
tive on the top floors has found it infuriating to have
his progress halted for 20 or more floors while clerks
and typists get on and off at each stop.

One solution to this problem which is virtually
never suggested, is the use of some elevators for
exclusive intra-floor travel within one company. That
is, if a firm uses the 10th to 15th floors, with employ¬
ees constantly going from one company floor to
another, why not give that firm its own elevator that
would only travel between the 10th and 15th floors?
Think of the convenience to the firm itself, and to
the other tenants in the building!

The subject of building systems is one that is often
overlooked in planning. “Flexibility” is often thought
to be the solution to any problem, but it can be a
problem in itself. Total flexibility is enormously ex¬
pensive; thorough planning can save you money.
What portions of your building will need air condi¬
tioning after hours? How many large offices and how
many small ones will you need? Small offices are
expensive to air condition but do give privacy; large,
undivided offices are cheaper to handle but lack
privacy. Planning can save you financial agony before
it’s too late.

Exterior wall systems are often overlooked by
company executives involved in planning. With their
success in handling heat, the exterior systems can
save thousands of dollars each year in heating costs.
In the future, with energy becoming more scarce and
therefore more highly priced, heat will be an increas¬
ingly important budget item.

All-glass buildings create problems when the sun
is beating down on one side while dreary winter is
closing in on the other. A possible solution is the use
of exterior sunshades, as long as they don’t conflict
with the architectural harmony of the building.
Another possibility is the use of reflective glass, al¬
though there are some technical problems still to be
resolved with this material. Aluminum is often used,
but it sometimes causes problems because of its
expansion and contraction during the course of the
day. Stainless steel is good but very expensive.

Internal safety features are important, particularly
in high-rises. I think we are moving towards the uni¬
versal installation of overhead, heat-activated fire
sprinklers. They might be regarded as an extra cost,
but only until they are needed. Then they will
literally be thought of as life-savers.

The choice of a good acoustical ceiling will help
keep out “cross talk,” the situation that exists when
you can hear every sneeze in the next office. Dense
mass is the key to stopping sound, and it’s something
you can control to your liking before you move in.

Carpeting is the universal floor covering today, but
you’ve got to be careful when buying. Otherwise,
you may have an inconvenient, and expensive, recar¬
peting job on your hands in a few years. Independent
interior decorators, or those consulting with the
architects, have become much more sophisticated in
carpet buying recently.

When trying to determine office arrangement, I
use a matrix system. On the matrix I plot every
person’s need to be close to a certain point, on a
scale of one to 10. That way everyone ends up in
the right place, in fact and theory.

During a trip to the Soviet Union last year I was
appalled at how few items their builders had to
choose from. In many areas there was only one win¬
dow design and one doorknob design available.
Needless to say, all windows and doorknobs look
alike.

In America, we have literally hundreds of styles

for each category; because of that, every builder or
designer can surely find the right size or shape for
the purpose at hand.

One trend that I think will continue is that towards
condominium office buildings — buildings which are
partially owned by each of the tenants. This is really
a financially sound way to go, because it gives the
“renting” company an opportunity to build up
equity.

When i thoughtful planning is incorporated into
the construction or rental of offices, there is really no
reason for mistakes. Thoughtful planning requires a
“meeting of the minds” among architect, company
owner and realtor. When mistakes arise, the reason
often reduces to the fact that the planners didn’t get
together often enough and just plain talk. Memos,
telegrams and junior executives are no substitute for
the top men exchanging knowledge, experience and
judgements. The architect has an obligation to work
with his client, and the client has an obligation to tell
his architect exactly what he needs.

With planning and foresight, there’s no reason why
any office, newly built or newly rented, can’t be the
corporate equivalent of a dream palace.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

Answer the questions and record your scores. Don’t look back!

1. The main reason companies build or rent new space is

a. that the planning in older buildings is so bad

b. that they cannot meet increasing maintenance needs of older buildings

c. to get out of the crowded city

d. to improve their corporate image

2. The article indicates that the most important factor to consider in selecting a site for
an office building is

a. rent

b. convenience

c. prestige of the area

d. distance from the company’s competitors

3. When top executives do not work with the architect, this results in

a. an expensive, image-making structure instead of a utilitarian building

b. a building that does not meet the needs of the company

c. allowing the architect absolute freedom to run the cost up

d. the executives being dissatisfied with their office space

4. A realtor is a necessary part of the planning team because he

a. can make sure the building will be salable if the company moves

b. can curtail the architect’s freedom

c. knows all the factors affecting the future of the site

d. has access to the most desirable sites

5. In the future the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may well force

a. rejuvenation of the urban areas

b. severe restrictions on suburban and rural building

c. an increase in garage space provided in new buildings

d. greater reliance on mass transportation

6. The cost of land and construction must be matched, primarily against the

a. efficiency of the building

b. employees’ access to shops and restaurants

c. corporate image being developed

d. shape and size of the building

7. Which of the following is not suggested as a solution to glare in all-glass buildings?

a. sunshades

b. Venetian blinds

c. reflective glass

d. aluminum

e. stainless steel

8. “Cross talk” between offices

a. facilitates inter-office communication

b. is considered of little consequence in planning a building

c. can be avoided by dense mass

d. can be accomplished through efficient phone installations

9. Condominium office buildings allow

a. the tenants to build up equity

b. responsibility for maintenance to be shared

c. a wider choice of architectural styles

d. companies to make do with less space

10. The biggest benefit of having the architect, company owner, and realtor work together is that

a. no memos have to be sent

b. the ultimate cost is cheaper

c. commuting problems can be solved ahead of time

d. there’s good planning and foresight

SUCCESS LOG TIMED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(10 points per correct answer)

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Techniques section.

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

Don’t Say a Word
TECHNIQUES

Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. Reading in thought units can help improve your concentration and comprehension of words and ideas.
Identifying thought units mainly comes through practice looking for them. They are groups of words, such as short,
dependent clauses or prepositional phrases, that go together in a meaningful way. For example, in a sentence from the
Unit 1 Techniques, “When the fox chased the hen, many feathers flew,” three idea units can be identified:

XX X

“When the fox,” “chased the hen,” and “many feathers flew.”

In reading this sentence the reader might fixate in the middle of each idea unit, as indicated by the X’s. Practice looking
for—and reading in—thought units in the following activities! Be sure to complete all the activities before beginning the
Flexible reading.

1. Each of the following sentences is divided into several thought units. Fixate on the middle of each thought unit and
read the sentences as fast as you can.

a. Since Desmond / was terribly desperate, / he roared / up the hill / at full speed.

b. As the tiny plane / touched its wheels / to the runway, / the ceiling closed in.

c. Tommy / crept up the stairs / and opened the can / of thick blue paint / without anyone / knowing about it.

d. Now is the time / for all good men / to come to the aid / of the party.

2. Read the paragraph below. As you read, imagine how it might be divided into thought units. Focus on the middle of
these imagined units.

“Down and Squawking.” FA A Aviation News.

March, 1973.

An ELT is basically a compact, light-weight, self-

contained transmitter which sends out an emer¬

gency signal on the two emergency frequencies —
121.5 MHz for civilians, and 243.0 MHz for mili¬

tary. Various models have been in use for about 10

years, particularly in Alaska where there was a
desperate need for a locating device to find missing
aircraft in the vast northland. They have conclu¬
sively proved their worth.

Now the same paragraph is reprinted with the sentences divided into thought units. Read it again with only one fixation
per unit. And determine if you need the same number of fixations as you did the first time. Push yourself. The longer you
linger, the more temptation there is to say the words.

An ELT is / basically a compact, / light-weight, / self-
contained transmitter / which sends out / an emer¬
gency signal / on the two emergency frequencies —/

121.5 MHz / for civilians, / and 243.0 MHz / for mili¬
tary./ Various models have been / in use for about /10
years, / particularly in Alaska / where there was / a
desperate need / for a locating device / to find missing
aircraft / in the vast northland. /They have conclu¬
sively / proved their worth.

3. The two stories below have been divided into thought units. Try to use one or two fixations to read each unit. Read as
fast as you can. Write the answers to the questions following the selections in the space provided. If you do not know
the answer to a question, read the selection a second or third time, very fast, to locate the answer. No key is provided.

Stokes, William. “The Wheel Spinner,” Ship the Kids on Ahead.

One of the

more pitiful sights of winter
is watching the driver
of a car

that is stuck in the snow.
They all act
pretty much alike.

The minute

the wheels start to spin,
the driver hunches forward
over the steering wheel
and his eyes
become fixed firmly
on the immediate destination —

usually the crest of a small slope.
When the rear wheels
continue to spin
and the car does not move,
the driver

sometimes initiates a rocking motion
with his body.

He rocks backward
in an easy sneaking motion,
and then tenses his body
and strains forward
against the steering wheel.

This, of course,
doesn’t do a thing
to help
the progress
of the vehicle,
but every driver does it
and knows beyond argument
that he is pushing the car
effectively from the inside.

This is comparable
to trying to tip over
a large building
by flinging yourself
against one of the inside walls.
The grip on the steering wheel
also is important.

The tighter the grip,
the more help is given
to the spinning rear wheels.
Perhaps almost as important
as body motion
is the facial expression
of the driver.

Almost all of them
stick their jaws out

and clamp their teeth together tightly.
At the same time,

their brows are pulled closer together,
and the skin of the forehead
is squeezed
toward the middle
of the face,
giving the impression
of a prune seen from one end.
Needless to say,
they are not pretty.
Sometimes the driver
will shift his eyes fleetingly
to one side to see
if he can perceive
any movement of his vehicle.

If he sees the slightest hint
that progress is being made,
he most generally

shoves harder on the accelerator,
pushing it almost through the floorboards
and immediately destroying any chance
of making the grade.

Some drivers
push so hard

that they get a charlie horse
in their right leg
and thus present
a menace to society in general
should their wheels
suddenly find footing.

The longer a driver is stuck,
the more of himself
he puts into the struggle
of getting unstuck.

After a time,

most drivers begin to talk.

There needn’t be anyone
in the car with them;

they talk anyway.

They tighten their lips
over their teeth
and talk with clenched jaws,
and they say things
that are intended
to urge the vehicles along.
Sometimes a driver speaks
unkindly and loudly.

If the energy that drivers waste
in the operation of stuck vehicles
could be harnessed,
it probably
would be enough
to light all the homes
in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois
for 30 or 40 days.

a. What are three characteristics of winter drivers the author writes about?

1 .

2 .

permission of Houghton Mifflin Company.

While in the country this summer, / we watched, /
like most other American families, / the week-long
space orbiting / of our astronauts. / We marveled, /
we applauded, / we sighed in relief / as they came

down safely. /

“I wonder what it would be like / to be on a space¬
ship,” / mused my ten-year-old boy. / “You’re on
one,” / I told him. / “And you have / been all your
life.” /

The earth itself / is a very small spaceship, / by
astronomical standards. / It is only 8,000 miles in
diameter, / which makes it just a tiny speck / in our
galaxy. / And our galaxy is only one of millions. / Yet
this tiny speck / has sustained billions of human
passengers / for more than two million years / as it
has orbited / around the solar system. / It shows no
signs / of running down for millions of years more, /
and all it needs / is radiation from the sun / to keep
it going / and to regenerate life “on board.” /

If we could implant / in our children, / at an early
age, / this concept / of a global spaceship, / they
might possibly be more prepared, / in attitude and
action, / to treat one another / as crew members
should, / when they grow up. /

It may be too late / — psychologically speaking — /
for most adults / to adopt this approach. / We see the
world / in narrow, sublunary terms: / in terms of
racial divisions / and national territories, / of ancient
rivalries and provincial fears, / of airtight compart¬
ments / separating one portion / of the crew / from
another. /

But to see the world / as the astronauts saw it / —
this fragile yet sturdy sphere / revolving in the immen¬
sity of space, / carrying its millions of passengers /
locked together for a lifetime — / is the only way to
make it / viable in the future. / When two men can
circle the globe / in less time than it takes us / to
mow a good-sized lawn, / then anything less / than
a global viewpoint / is dangerously inadequate. /

Nature has provided us / with a magnificently self-
renewing space ship, / containing everything it needs
for perpetual flight, / for nourishment, for comfort/ —
and even for beauty. / If the Gemini astronauts / had
quarrelled and fought, / or sulked and sneered, /
even a week’s flight / would have been imperiled. /
Everybody / is an involuntary crew member / on
Earth I. / The compartments we create / are artificial
and destructive. / Until now, however, / we only had /
the power / to injure other members of the crew. /
Today we can / easily blow up the whole ship / and
everybody on it. /

The only hope / is to think / of ourselves / as
astronauts.

In what terms does the author describe how humans view their world?

Using a pencil, divide the sentences into thought units by inserting slashes between meaningful chunks.

“Down and Squawking.” FAA Aviation News. March, 1973.

There is a pilot who is alive today because he mis¬
interpreted a Federal Aviation Regulation.

The FAR in question (91.52) is based on an Act of
Congress making it mandatory for virtually all general
aviation planes to be equipped with an emergency
locator transmitter (ELT) by December 30, 1973.

The pilot is William Chambers of Santa Fe, N.M.,
who misread that FAR and concluded that an ELT
had to be installed by December 30 of 1972. In early
December of last year he had an FAA approved loca¬
tor transmitter installed in his Luscombe. Two weeks
later, on December 16, Chambers crashed in the
10,000 foot levels of the Sangre De Cristo Mountains,
northeast of Santa Fe. He survived the accident with
only cuts and abrasions and two fractured ribs, but it
was then five o’clock in the morning, with two feet of

snow on the ground and the temperature near zero.
Chambers huddled near his crashed plane and des¬
perately hoped someone would find him before he
froze.

At the moment of impact the ELT he had installed
two weeks previously was activated and continued
sending out its distinct signals on the emergency
frequencies. Early in the day the signal was picked
up by search aircraft, and just before nightfall they
located Chambers on the mountainside. The area
was inaccessible by foot, but a rescue helicopter
picked him up and returned him to Santa Fe. Res¬
cuers doubted whether the downed pilot could
have survived through the night on the frigid moun¬
tain. Chambers will always be grateful he misread
that FAR.

Now go back, read the paragraph as fast as you can, and then write the answers to the questions in the space. If you
don’t know the answer to a question, quickly reread the selection in order to find it.

c. What was the law the pilot misread?

d. Where did the pilot crash?

e. How does the ELT work?

Proceed to the Flexible reading and read the directions.

Be Flexible

FLEXIBLE READING

Directions. Next you’re going to read a short story in a different writing style from what you’ve been seeing so far.
We’ve divided part of the story into thought units to help you practice reading ‘ ‘in chunks. ’ ’ Read as fast as you can; try to
take in each cluster of words with a single fixation. Try to continue reading in thought units in the part of the story that is
not already divided.

You may not always agree with our choice of words for thought units, and you may have some difficulty getting each
cluster with a single fixation. But do your best. And remember that applying a new skill often seems a little awkward at
first.

Your main purpose is to begin establishing the useful habit of taking in more words per fixation. There are only five
questions to answer this time. (From now on, you will either answer 10 questions or sometimes only 5. We’ll always
tell you ahead of time.) Never look back to the selection when you answer the questions. Remember to record your scores
and Reading Efficiency Index. Push the joystick button when you start and stop reading. One last thought: Enjoy the
story. Give attention to the thought units, but let your thoughts flow with the story. You’ll find that thought units come
naturally.

Low tide / 9:48 a.m. / lodged in her mind / as she
browsed / through The Block Island Times. / It was not
Elbe Ruisi’s dream / of a summer vacation / to have
served breakfast, / washed dishes / and clothes, / and to
be reading a newspaper / by 8:30 in the morning. / But
her youngest son, Jocky, / age four, / climbed into her bed
/ by 6:30 every morning, / told her about his dreams / and
discussed / how hungry he was, / until there was no way /
for her / to escape consciousness. / And once / she was up
clinking breakfast dishes. / Stephanie, eight, / and Brian,
seven, / hurried awake / to join her. / Stephanie / would
pour Jocky’s milk / and cereal, / Brian make toast / . . .
each helping / in little ways / without being asked / . . .
solicitously, / Elbe thought, / as if her / children were
afraid / that she could / not manage / getting breakfast /
on her own. /

Now with the work done, / and Elbe / safely within
sight / on the summer / house’s porch, / it was all right /
for them / to play. / They sat like / three men in a tub, /
playing ferry boat / in a cracked blue plastic dinghy /
that had been rescued from the dump, /pretending that/
the grass was ocean. / Elbe half listened /to the game/ as
she sipped her coffee / and read through the Times. /
Stephanie was allowing Brian / to be captain / because he
was the only one of them / with a white captain’s hat /
stamped “Block Island.” /

“I’ll be the purser, / and Jocky / can be first mate. / The
purser’s more important / because he gets to collect / all
the money / any way,” / Stephanie announced. /

“Look, / there’s a shark. / Jaws!” / Brian, who had
appropriated / the plastic binoculars, / shouted. /

“Where?” /

“Over there / . . . Jaws . . . ” /

“Let me / have the binoculars, / Brian, / it’s my turn!”/
howled Stephanie. /

Elbe put the paper down / and escaped / into the house /
to pour another cup / of coffee / and straighten up a few
things / until the fight / should spend itself. / She
returned to the porch; / the morning sun / made the
marsh grass glisten/down in the bog/behind the house./

Selection: “SECRET SHARK:”

Written by: Deborah Navas and reprinted with
permission from Yankee magazine, published by
Yankee, Inc., Dublin N.H., July, 1980.

It was a lovely day / . . . to do what?/To go clamming/of
course. / 9:48 a.m., / low tide / . . . perfect timing / for
clamming. / She had only / two weeks off / from work / to
spend / with the children / on the Island, / and she was
determined / to dissolve the lump / of divorce / in their
lives / with motion, / stirring things up / with lots of
activities. /

“Mommy, / sharks can’t come / into the harbor, / can
they?” Jocky asked. /

“No, honey.” / Elbe rowed the children,/eachsnug/in
his orange life jacket, / across the shallow inlet / of New
Harbor / to the clamming flats. / It would have been
simpler / to walk / the few hundred yards / of beach, / but
they all preferred the boat, / a wooden pram / that Elbe’s
father had made her / when she was / a little girl.

“But there are sharks / around Block Island, / aren’t
there, Mommy?” / Stephanie asked. /

“There’s one,” / from Brian / who was peering /
through the plastic binoculars. /

“Let me see, / give them to me / Brian, / they’re mine /
Mommy” . . .

“Shut up, baby, / it wasn’t really a shark, / just that
buoy ...” /

“No, it’s too cold / around Block Island / for sharks,” /
she answered Stephanie’s question finally, / and
continued to row / against the light wind / and current /
that persisted in pulling them / into shore. / “The shark in
the movie / was just make-believe / anyway, it wasn’t
even / a real shark.” /

“Can we see / the movie, / please?” / Stephanie pleaded.

“No,” Elbe sighed. / It was an old argument. / “It’s too
scary.” / She shipped the oars, / hopped out / into the
knee-deep water, / and hauled the boat / by its rope / the
rest of the way into shore. /

Kneeling in the water / that came up to her middle, /
she sifted / through the sand / with a large bleached sea
clam shell / she had found / on the beach. / When she
struck / an area rich / with clams, / she would work it
methodically / in wider and wider circles, / dragging her

plastic net clam bag / along with her. / Others may or
may not do better / with clam rakes, / but she preferred /
to kneel down in the water. / She didn’t feel / as exposed /
in water / as she did in air, / but comfortable, at home. /
Despite the fact / of finding an occasional / horseshoe
crab, / sharp-shelled conch, / and once a grotesque / pink
ribbon of a worm / that made her want to gag, / she loved
clamming, / almost better / than anything else. / Turning
up the gray-white shells, / trying each / through the ring /
was a ritual / in solitude, / allowing room for
contemplation. /

The children were busy playing / on the shore, / their
orange vests bright butterflies / across the width / of the
shallow water. / They were / in and out / of the boat
awhile, / and then had gone out of sight / to explore the
marshes / beyond the beach grass. / One or another of
them / would reappear and disappear again / through the
marsh grass, / so she didn’t have to worry / over not
seeing them. /

Damn! / Why were her children / always yelling /
indecipherable things / across fields, water, / or from
eight rooms away? / She looked at her clam bag /. . . only
half full. / She ignored / Brian’s wild gesturing / in a
resolute search / for more clams. / She hadn’t had / her
full clamming time / away from them yet; / it was unfair
of them / always to be demanding / her attention. / But it
didn’t work; / she couldn’t sustain / ignoring them. /
After all, / it was unfair to them now / with Tony gone, /
and with her working / at a full-time job, / they had so few
hours / of parent left. /

Stephanie had appeared / through the marsh grass /
also, waving her in, / but no Jocky in sight. / Sudden fear
for Jocky / and guilt / that she / had not responded /
immediately impelled her up. / She clutched her bag /
and clam ring / and made haste / through the thigh-deep
water, / running in slow motion. /

“Where’s Jocky?” she shouted, but they couldn’t hear
her. They kept shouting something back that she couldn’t
hear. She pushed herself through the encumbering
water, finally gaining speed in the shallows, shouting to
them, “Where’s Jocky?”

Unconcerned, Jocky appeared through the marsh
grass.

“He’s right there,” Brian answered with a shrug.

“Mommy, guess what?” Stephanie clamored and they
all started shouting at once.

“Will you all just shut up a minute.” She bit back the
things she felt like yelling for fear of scorching their
tender ears. She had cut her foot on a broken shell or
piece of glass or something while running, and it hurt.

“But sharks, Mommy!” Stephanie, Brian and Jockey
yelled more or less in unison.

“Is that all you called me all the way in for?” She
sighed, slung the clam bag into the boat and pulled it up
further on the beach as it had begun to slip out with the
incoming tide.

“Mommy, honest, real sharks, we found them in the
pool back there . . .” Stephanie began to explain.

“Three of them,” Brian interrupted.

“I found them first, Brian, let me tell her.”

“See, Mommy, we told you.” They were all three
laughing and dancing around in the water, gleeful for
having proved her wrong, and she delighted with them.

Yes, see, Mommy, indeed. Three sand sharks. . . about
two-and-a-half to three feet long; they were describing
tracks in the pool with their little lethal fins. The children
chased them around, but Ellie, more cautious and also
suddenly aware of her bleeding foot, studied them from a
distance.

They looked like every picture of a shark she had ever
seen or imagined . . . smooth gray gill slits and mouth
sharp as cuts, a simple shape like a child’s drawing of a
fish. . . no unnecessary detail, nothing wasted. What was
last year’s promotional hype? “Evolved through
centuries as efficient killing machines,” or something to
that effect. But these sharks didn’t appear to be
immediately interested in killing. These were babies,
miniature killing machines, and now they only wanted to
get out. They kept cruising the mouth of the pool where
the tide was coming in that would rescue them.

Their names were Clyde, Claude, and Seymour,
Stephanie explained. The children had named them
while Ellie was busy clamming.

They watched as one of the sharks approached the
mouth of the pool, wriggled its way along until the water
became too shallow, then scraped bottom and turned to
make its way back to the deep part of the pool. “See, that’s
what they keep doing. But how does it know the way out?”
Stephanie asked.

It was a good question. Ellie wondered also how they
knew the way out, for the tide pool extended many
fingers of water into the marshes on every side. She
imagined how it would be if she were one of the sharks,
following along the wrong little stream, having to scrape
her way back to the middle of the pool to begin all over in
who knew which direction. “I don’t know how they know
— instinct, I guess,” she answered.

“What’s instinct?”

“Something children and animals have that lets them
know things . . . but nobody tells them . . . children
outgrow it, animals don’t.” She smiled at Stephanie’s
bewilderment and added, “Look how the tide is coming
in, see those little ripply waves on the water? That’s it
coming in to make the pool deeper. The sharks know it.”

One of the sharks was preparing to try again.
“Seymour,” Stephanie supplied his name. It was the
littlest shark and had a gash on its side, either from an
earlier futile attempt to escape, or perhaps inflicted by
one of its carnivorous peers. Seymour swam into the
shallows, fin, tail, and back breaking the surface of the
pool. He seemed to be hung up a moment on a tussock of

grass, and Ellie and the children shouted
encouragement. The tide rippled encouragement also,
bearing imperceptible depth. Seymour wriggled some
more, casting for direction, space. Seymour skittered
over shells and small sand banks. They watched his
progress . . . yes, he was surmounting the last hurdle. . .
yes, he made it!

They watched his fin grow distant along the shallow
flats until it disappeared. The children turned to see if
the remaining two sharks would follow Seymour’s
example, but Ellie continued to watch the spot where
Seymour had last been visible . . . jealous that he had
escaped, as if there were a still dark pool inside her from
which Seymour had escaped.

They stood around a while to see if the other two would
escape also, but the children grew bored with waiting,
and Jocky announced that he was hungry for lunch. As
she rowed them back across the shallows, the children
talked excitedly about the sharks — guessing how they
got into the pool, when they would get out, and whether or
not they would grow into great white man-eating sharks.

“But they aren’t white,” Stephanie said.

“But sometimes animals change colors when they grow
up, don’t they, Mommy?” Brian asked.

“Sometimes.” Ellie rowed against the tide and thought
about it. In the silence of her thinking, the children went

on with their shark conversation. Stephanie announced
that she was going to be the first to tell Daddy about the
sharks. Ellie had made it a point that they might call
Daddy whenever they felt like it, and since Stephanie
was the only one of them who could figure out the
complications of area code from Block Island, her claim
went undisputed.

Elbe’s foot throbbed, but she ignored it. She was still
thinking over Stephanie’s question about the color of
sharks. It was a temptation to use it to begin a discussion
about growing, the possibility of changing colors, or
changing, or at the very least to caution about the
preposterous odds against man-eating white sharks
appearing on Block Island. But to use the sharks as an
excuse for a harangue seemed untrue to them. . . besides
she really didn’t want to deliver a harangue anyway; she
felt too peaceful.

Yes, so there were real sharks on Block Island, cruising
in a hidden tide pool. They had been trapped for a while,
but soon they would all be gone, back to sea. Perhaps they
were gone already. She listened to the children chatter
and felt an inexplicable joy welling up within her. . .that
she had been privileged to have met the dream creatures,
that they had waited there for her especially to show her
how they swam away.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

Answer the questions and record your scores!

1. Brian was allowed to be captain when the children played like three men in a tub because he

a. had done all the morning breakfast dishes

b. had the proper attire

c. was a crybaby

d. was the tub’s owner

2. The thing Ellie enjoyed almost better than anything else was

a. clamming

b. pouring over the Times

c. having the time to sort out her thoughts and feelings

d. being with her children

3. Ellie didn’t believe there were sharks near Block Island because

a. the thought of sharks frightened her

b. none had been spotted in recent years

c. she didn’t want to indulge her children’s fantasies

d. it was too cold

4. When Brian first told his mother about the sharks, she

a. feared her bleeding foot would attract them

b. preferred to continue clamming

c. panicked because Jocky had been missing

d. swam swiftly into shore

5. Ellie explained that instincts were

a. the base side of all creatures

b. the real reason she and Tony had three children

c. a faculty human adults didn't possess

d. something* that children outgrow and animals don’t

SUCCESS LOG FLEXIBLE READING

READING SPEED _ WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE_%

(20 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

READING PROGRESS GRAPH

Directions

UNIT 2

READING EFFICIENCY INDEX.

1. Refer to the three Unit 2 Success Log Boxes and enter in the computer your three reading rates and three comprehen¬
sion scores, as the screen directs.

2. Record your Unit 2 REI above and on the REI Record page in the back of your Workbook.

3. Press QQjQ to load the Reading Progress Graph. While the graph loads, read “On Your Way” below.

ON YOUR WAY

How were your scores for this unit? Many people find the last selection more difficult because of the author’s
style. Are you encouraged by your progress on some of the activities? You should be. Each step forward, no mat¬
ter how small, means you’re on your way to acquiring more skill. Skill that can make your reading easier. And
more fun. Do the units regularly, enthusiastically, and you’ll probably even surprise yourself with your gains.

The place to review your gains, of course, is the Reading Progress Graph that you complete at the end of each
unit. You can see the general trend of your progress by noting the Reading Efficiency Index for each unit. This in¬
dex is a simple measure of your words-per-minute rate achieved on each reading selection, modified by your com¬
prehension score. Keep in mind it is a very general guideline to your progress, and may not reflect every change in
your pattern, such as a large increase in speed combined with a decrease in comprehension! Overall, however, it
should help you see a trend in your results.

4. Enter your Pretest, Unit 1 and Unit 2 REI’s when the screen prompts you to do so. (Obtain these from the REI Record
page in your Workbook.) Press ■sklllsMh after each entry.

5. Press

START

to view your graph.

UNIT

GAINING MOMENTUM

• To begin Unit 3 complete the steps in the STARTING UP section.

• Be sure you have inserted Cassette 2 with Side 1 up.

• After listening to the audio segment, turn to the Warm-up and read the directions.

WARM-UP EXERCISE

Directions. The format in all the ATARI Speed Reading units is the same, so now you know what to expect. Get
yourself really going with this Warm-up drill. It’s your chance to go all out and not forsake much. Set your beginning
Reading Window Rate at 120. Then try to increase your rate as you do the exercise. You may use 30 as a general guideline
for increasing your rate in each unit, but always adjust your increment to the difficulty of the exercise.

The words are similar to those in Unit 2. Enter your RWR and press the joystick button when you are ready to start.
Record your results below.

WARM-UP EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY MINUTES _

SCORE _

SECOND TRY MINUTES _

SCORE _

Note: Record the tape counter setting in the space provided at the beginning of the Phrase-reading exercise.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE

Tape Counter Setting.

Discussion. As you begin this exercise, take a minute to think of the several skills we’ve discussed that are important
to becoming an efficient reader. We introduced sub vocalization and explained how you should try to see words without
pronouncing them. At the same time, try to respond to more words in each fixation by reading in thought units. The point
is to concentrate on reading for ideas, not on pronouncing each word.

Keep these ideas in mind as you practice!

Directions. To set your reading rate look over your results in your previous Paced and Timed readings. How are you
doing? If you’re having trouble scoring 7 of 10 questions correctly, don Ybe discouraged. Try to improve your concentra¬
tion and still push for speed. Don’t slow back down. That’s not the answer! Just take it easy. Increase your speed, maybe
by only 25 words per minute. The important thing in these first lessons is to strike a balance—one that permits you to read
faster and faster while understanding important ideas you’ve read. With a little practice, you can do it.

If you are understanding what you read, for example, consistently scoring 9 or 10 correctly, pace yourself faster than
ever. Use a 50 words-per-minute increase as a guideline, but don’t be afraid to try a larger increase. Try to adjust to the
movements of the Reading Window as well as you can. As your speed increases, keeping up with the three stops per line
requires more concentration. This Phrase-reading technique is a useful tool—make it work to your advantage.

Check your previous results, enter your words-per-minute rate, and push the joystick button to begin. Record your rate
below.

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY READING SPEED _

SECOND TRY READING SPEED _

WPM

Note: Record the tape counter setting in the space provided at the beginning of the Paced reading.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

Right Time, Right Pace

PACED AND TIMED DIRECTIONS

Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. Keep up your pace! Let the increasing frequency of the audio tones stimulate you to pace yourself faster.
Try taking in a thought unit with each sound of a tone. Some people will occasionally use the same tones-per-minute set¬
ting for two or three exercises. When you feel you’re ready, go for a small or a large increase in speed. Don’t be afraid to
experiment.

In Unit 2 we suggested you begin at 120 tones per minute. You may want to increase your beginning tpm rate by
another 40 tones this time. If you did not increase your tpm in Unit 2, try an increase of about 40 tpm this time. Keep
pushing yourself to keep up with the pace of the tones.

Directions. Find out what’s happening in, “When What to My Wondering Eyes Should Appear,” by reading the first
half with the Audio Metronome Pacer set at a constant rate. Then record your rate and answer 10 questions on the first
half. But don’t take time to correct them yet. Read the second half of this article with the tpm rate set a little faster than it
was on the first half. Then record your words per minute for the second half (Timed reading) and do the questions. Check
all your answers and record your comprehension scores in your Success Log Boxes. Press the joystick button when you
begin and finish each half of the article.

Farish, Lucius and Titler, Dale M. “When What to My Wondering Eyes Should Appear,”

Yankee , December, 1973, pp. 100-101, 186-192.

All New England had an excitingly different
Christmas in 1909. The anxious eyes of children and
grown-ups were turned skyward — not for Saint
Nicholas and his reindeer — but for a mysteriously
lighted phantom airship of the night. The intrigue
was heightened by the bold claims of one Wallace E.
Tillinghast, inventor and proclaimed aviator of Wor¬
cester, Massachusetts.

For two weeks, at the peak of the Christmas season,
thousands watched for the nightly return of a dimly-
outlined airship with large colored searchlights. It
maneuvered easily through the chill skies over Massa¬
chusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New York.
Oddly, the fact that a similar lighted body was also
seen in the night skies over Arkansas, Oregon and
Tennessee — and that 13 years earlier the West and
Midwest had experienced similar sightings — escaped
the attention of most New Englanders..

Tillinghast, the demiurgic and high-strung president
of the Sure Seal Manufacturing Company, builders of
heating equipment, lived with his wife and children
at 35 Catherine Street. Though widely reputed to be
an inventor, no one could recall anything the man
had invented. His name was not on the patent rolls,
although there had grown around him a sizeable
legendary account of his younger inventive years. As
a “wonderfully precocious child,” his early years in
Bridgeport were spent in “bending over something to
study it out.” Acquaintances described him as “a
curious, queer fellow whose . . . inventive ideas
were . . . unique — but not practical.”

On December 12, 1909, Tillinghast blandly in¬

formed reporters that on the night of September 8 he
and two of his mechanics flew a monoplane of his
design from Worcester to Boston, then on to New
York, and returned. He said it had been the 18th
flight of his new machine and all tests had been made
at night. Secretive, he refused to reveal the storage
place of his aircraft but admitted it would be entered
in next year’s Boston international air contest. He
did reveal that it was guarded by four men at a place
60 miles from Worcester and 14 miles from a railroad
station.

The machine, Tillinghast claimed, had a 72-foot
wingspan, weighed 1550 pounds, and could fly 300
miles without refueling, at a speed of 120 miles per
hour. It was powered with a 120-horsepower gasoline
engine of his own manufacture, he added. At one
time during the flight, they soared to 4000 feet and,
when the engine suddenly failed them over Fire
Island, they glided about for 46 minutes while his
mechanics made repairs. All modesty aside, Tilling¬
hast described his airplane’s performance: “The speed
of the machine so much exceeds the speed reported at
the recent meeting at Rheims . . . the altitude records
which I have made are greater than any made by
American or Foreign aeroplanes.” Dr. Arthur G.
Webster, professor of physics at Clark University,
soundly denounced the claims.

Strangely, it was about the time of Tillinghast’s
alleged flight, said E. B. Hanna of South Windham,
Connecticut, when he saw a bright light in the eastern
part of the night sky. It was high in the air and moved
rapidly toward him, he said, swaying back and forth

like a traveling searchlight. It disappeared behind the
hills between South Windham and Lebanon. To lend
further credence to Tillinghast’s claim, the very night
after the inventor’s announcement to the press, surf-
man William Leach of the Fire Island life-saving
station reported hearing a high-flying airplane pass
overhead at 7:15 P.M. He saw nothing, but reported
a sound in the air like the hum of a high-speed engine
running wide open. Was it Tillinghast on another test
flight?

Worcester patrolman William F. Spencer was walk¬
ing his west side beat on Pleasant Street at 4:00 A.M.
on Sunday, December 19. He was startled as the
buildings and streets were suddenly illuminated bright
as day. “At first I thought it was fire,” Spencer said,
“then, when I saw it came from above, I thought of
an airship. I saw the last of the fall of the brightest
meteor, or comet ... I ever laid eyes on. It had a long
tail of solid fire,. . . behind for one and a half minutes
after the main body of the meteor had disappeared.”

Then, at 1:15 A.M. on December 20, Immigration
Inspector Hoe, on duty at Long Wharf in Boston
Harbor, watched another “airship” move swiftly
overhead. The inspector saw part of the craft’s frame¬
work where an underslung light reflected upon it.
Two nights later at the same dark hour, people of
Pawtucket and Providence, Rhode Island, sighted
something in the sky. Two red lights appeared over¬
head and swept steadily southward toward Newport.
The outline of a flying machine could be seen against
the background of stars. Residents of Marlboro,
Massachusetts, sighted something airborne early on
the night of the 22nd. It traveled northwest at 30
m.p.h., toward Clinton. The stage was almost set for
New England’s greatest aerial mystery.

By now, reporters and curious persons were be-
seiging Wallace Tillinghast with questions. His tele¬
phone rang continuously. Telegrams arrived from all
over the country. He was visited at home and at work.
Everyone asked him the same question: “Were you
flying your airship last night?” Tillinghast grew angry
and brushed the questions away. He refused to discuss
his aircraft and would not say whether it was his
machine seen over Boston Harbor. He wouldn’t deny
it, either.

“If I were the one, it’s my own business and no
one else’s!”

He took unkindly to joking, stated it was a serious
matter and insisted his machine had done all he
claimed. “I’m all through talking of it.”

Speculation spread quickly. Someone reported
that Tillinghast and his hybrid single-cylinder Cadillac-
with-a-Peerless-body had been seen leaving his garage
on Orne Street after 11 o’clock at night, and some¬
times returning as late as six o’clock in the morning.
It always showed signs of a long run, it was claimed.

The car’s unique black and maroon appearance at¬
tracted the attention of a Connecticut motorist who
stopped in Worcester for gasoline. “I’ve seen that car
before,” he commented. “It passed me in the suburbs
of Litchfield.” Those who overheard his remark
wondered how near to that Connecticut town was
Tillinghast’s secret airplane hangar.

The curtain went up on the night of December 22,
when the sky machine boldly displayed itself. About
5:20 that afternoon an aerial object, reputed to be
an airship, appeared out of the southeast sky over
Grafton and moved over Worcester. It sent out
brilliant rays of light from a powerful searchlight
mounted under — and ahead — of it. The machine
flew at a height of 2000 feet, but its shape could
not be determined. The news spread like wildfire
and soon thousands had come into the streets to see
the mysterious visitor. A restaurant porter sweeping
the sidewalk sighted the light and shouted out the
news. All 60 diners rushed into the street.

The object made a wide circle over the city at 40
m.p.h., then moved off towards Marlboro. It covered
the 16 miles in 30 minutes. There, residents saw it
travel northwest at 60 m.p.h. It was seen east of
Norwich at 7:30. People in South Framingham,
Natick, Ashland, Grafton, Upton, Hopedale and
Northboro also followed the mysterious light.

Two hours after its first appearance, an eager
shout went up from waiting crowds at Worcester.
The airship had returned. This time it drifted over¬
head for 15 minutes as it made four circles of the
city. Two thousand excited spectators craned their
necks while the sharp rays of its great searchlight
danced across the sky and made circles. The glaring
rays cut the murk and were sharply defined against a
thin snowfall that covered the city. The light appeared
to be two-thirds the size of an automobile headlamp.
When it first appeared, it traveled back and forth
from the State Mutual Building to the post office in
Franklin Square. As the shafts of light swept the
streets, they illuminated the waving flags atop a tall
department store on Main Street and made the
polished window frames come alive with a weird,
uncanny flame.

At one time the craft slowed to a standstill for
several minutes. Christmas shoppers on Main Street
forgot their errands, and in parts of Worcester busi¬
ness came to a halt. More than 20 policemen forgot
to walk their beats and send in duty calls.

Above the light, the dark, obscure mass of some
sort of airship could be dimly seen. Some observers
claimed they could identify broad, projecting wings;
others saw figures seated in the center of the machine.
Oddly, no one heard the noise of an engine — or even
took notice that the machine was silent. Guy Lane,
a motorman on the Boston and Worcester street

railway, and Conductor Edward Stone, said it kept
ahead of their car, which was traveling at 30 miles
per hour.

Five minutes after the air machine faded into the
night, south and east of Worcester, its searchlight
glared forth in the distance again “like a monster
star.” Was r it the ghost of Darius Green and his flying
machine or . . .? Come to think of it, where was

Wallace Tillinghast?

A quick check showed he was not at home, nor
could he be found anywhere in Worcester. It was
learned he left his office late that afternoon and
boarded an eastbound train. People nodded. Yes, it
was Tillinghast all right — on another of his nightly
test flights.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1. The phantom ship the New Englanders viewed for two weeks in 1909

a. had also been spotted in other parts of the country

b. was thought by some to be a religious phenomenon because it was
the Christmas season

c. was almost certainly an alien aircraft

d. was a prank concocted by Wallace E. Tillinghast

2. Wallace E. Tillinghast was widely reputed as

a. a daredevil aviator

b. a precocious genius and holder of many patents

c. an inventor of impractical, unique items

d. the legitimate inventor of the airplane

3. Tillinghast claimed his flying machine

a. had a range of more than 800 miles

b. broke all speed and altitude records

c. was rather slow but glided exceptionally well

d. was powered by a steam turbine engine of advanced design

4. Patrolman William F. Spencer described the aerial mystery over Worcester in
December as

a. a fiery animal in the sky

b. a great star that appeared to dance through the night

c. the brightest comet or meteor he had ever seen

d. two flashing red lights

5. After the December sightings, Tillinghast brushed reporters away because he
believed that

a. he would be arrested for his pranks

b. someone would challenge him to a race

c. his wonderful airplane had to be kept secret

d. what he did was his own business

6. What made the aircraft so highly visible on December 22?

a. a peculiar glow emanating from the rear

b. the exhaust flames from its powerful engine

c. light from the setting sun reflected on its shiny surface

d. a searchlight mounted under and ahead of it

7. A particularly unusual feature of the craft was that

a. it could never be clearly seen or described

b. it could hover silently for several minutes

c. it usually flew in large, concentric circles

d. its headlights were bright enough to penetrate the clouds

8. The fastest speed at which the craft was observed to travel was

a. 8 miles per hour

b. 30 miles per hour

c. 60 miles per hour

d. 120 miles per hour

9. The aircraft’s searchlight was estimated to be

a. about two thirds the size of an auto headlamp

b. about three times the size of a large auto headlamp

c. brighter than the morning sun

d. intense enough to be seen in the distance at night

10. People assumed the craft was manned by Tillinghast out on a test run because

a. they knew he would do anything for publicity

b. they preferred to think it was he and not a Martian

c. he was not at home when the craft was out

d. he was known to be eccentric but honest

SUCCESS LOG PACED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(10 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

The following morning, Tillinghast refused to dis¬
cuss the sighting and ordered all newspaper men from
his office. One journalist humbly said he’d come all
the way from New York to interview him. Retorted
Tillinghast: “I don’t give a damn whether you’ve
come from the Alaska goldfields; you won’t get any¬
thing out of me!” Tongues wagged and news sleuths
hit the trail, hot for the place where his machine was
hidden.

On the evening of December 23, with a clear, crisp
sky and a light wind blowing, the machine visited
Boston as thousands traced its flight across Massa¬
chusetts. It was first sighted over Fitchburg about
6:00 P.M. It meandered its way to the big city by
way of Marlboro, Framingham and Natick. Here
residents said it came to within 100 feet of the
ground. Some claimed there were two men in the
craft; one standing forward near the headlight, the
second man in the stern. It continued on over Need¬
ham and Newton and arrived over the city shortly
after 7:00 P.M., where it hovered 25 minutes over
the Boston Common. Then it crossed the Charles
Street Mall.

It moved northeast, circled Chelsea and arrived
over Revere at 7:40. Two observant residents, Samuel
Gibby and A. Sylvester Van Vost, took note of some
details. Gibby said there seemed to be huge wings on
each side of the bright light. Shortly before 8:00 it
crossed Lynn and moved toward the Salem line, then
it returned to Boston. It moved slowly over the
Common again, then headed toward Copley Square
and Back Bay. People all across New England were
wondering: Is there really a light in the sky, or are we
merely seeing things amid the rejoicing of the
Christmas season?

Skaters in the Public Gardens left the ice to follow
the throng. Members of the Somerset and Puritan
Clubs joined residents along Beacon Street to crane
their necks. On Huntington Avenue, opera fans enter¬
ing the Boston Opera House paused to watch the
drifting light for ten minutes. The object moved back
and forth, east and west. The crowds watched it move
over Harvard Square in Cambridge, Riverbank Court,
Charlegate Hospital, Cottage Farm and Somerville.
At 8:30 it was going southwest toward Newton, Ash¬
land and Worcester. It was last seen moving west
near Paxton.

At one time during its trip, the light was reported
as far south as Willimantic, Connecticut, where the
excited townspeople marveled at its powerful search¬
light that played from side to side. And next came a
report from Marlboro that the same mysterious air¬
ship that had flown overhead was first noticed there
on the evening of December 14 — and had returned
at least eight times!

Meanwhile, Wallace Tillinghast was beginning to

wish he had never released his flying stories. The im¬
pression was now widespread that it was he who had
sailed through the night sky with a searchlight. When
anyone knocked on his front door while he was at
breakfast, he leaped out the back door and ran. At
times he denied his identity.

While all of eastern Massachusetts was agog over
the heavenly display, in Worcester, Frank Moynahan,
the night fire alarm operator, was on duty in the
tower of fire headquarters. He answered a telephone
call from another fireman who drew his attention to
the sky light. Moynahan turned to the window to
look, and as he did, he happened to glance down
across the street into Tillinghast’s office, where he
clearly saw the man hard at work over his drafting
board. There was no question about it; Wallace
Tillinghast was not the pilot of the airship. This
was confirmed by reporters who had shadowed the
inventor from 5:30 until 8:00 P.M.

Newspapers had a heyday as scores of reports
poured into their offices. Young journalists, eager to
play with words, waxed poetic. One in Leominster
had the airship’s light “cutting athwart the azure sky,”
and in Fitchburg a rhetorical youth reported its mon¬
ster lamp throwing “clear, blinding yellow rays across
the dome of inky blackness.” In Maynard, a reporter
wrote: “Like a pellucid stream the waves of the light
broke through, over, beyond, under and up against
the filmy splotches of white, a dazzling play in
cloudland.”

Christmas Eve in Boston was memorable. Thous¬
ands blocked sidewalks, street corners and squares
from dusk until midnight. From Lower Washington
Street, Dock Square, Tremont Row, Scollay Square,
Court, Bromfield, Tremont Streets and the Common,
shoppers laden with gifts scanned the sky. The air¬
ship did not disappoint them — nor the residents of
Worcester, Salem and Fitchburg. Newburyport re¬
ported a mysterious light in its northern sky at 7:00
P.M. It returned at 8:20 in the southeast as its bril¬
liant rays changed color. Children were sure Saint
Nicholas was abroad that night; they saw him. In
Boston some older pranksters with childlike devil¬
ishness, sent aloft a hot-air balloon to keep the air¬
ship mystery at peak interest. It dropped onto a two-
story building in Franklin Square, and only the
quick work of the fire department prevented the
blaze from doing damage.

At the corner of Bromfield and Tremont Streets
there was great suspense and excitement as the air¬
ship appeared to approach a few feet lower than
the top of the Park Street Church steeple. The tense
crowd watched, certain the airship would crash into
the structure. But at the last moment it slowed to a
standstill, then turned away.

Disputes broke out everywhere. The machine was

moving; it only appeared to be moving. The lights
were really stars; they weren’t stars. The aircraft had
wings; it didn’t have wings. While they argued, it
moved again over Revere and Lynn. At 7:00 pas¬
sengers in an electric car at Newton said they heard
the “whirr” of the phantom craft’s engines as it
moved southwest toward Wellesley.

Back in Worcester, Mr. Tillinghast had reason to
sweat. Worcester businessmen were upset by the ad¬
verse notoriety brought to their city by the wide¬
spread reports of the inventor’s claims and his still
unseen “airship.” The fair city of Worcester, they
said, had been placed in a ridiculous light because
Tillinghast had stubbornly refused to allow anyone
to see his invention. It was decided that a Board of
Trade Committee would call on Mr. Tillinghast and
get to the bottom of the matter. A few days later it
was announced to the press by Tillinghast’s “mana¬
ger,” William Hunt, that the inventor’s aircraft would
be exhibited at the Boston Aero Show on February
16 through the 23rd.

On Christmas Day the airship made its only day¬
time appearance over New England. At 11:40 A.M.
Fire Captain George F. Barrows of Engine Company
12 in New Haven, Connecticut, watched with his men
as a “queer object” passed overhead at 1000 feet,
traveling northeast. It moved slowly, for they kept
it in view for almost ten minutes. Barrows clearly
saw the machine’s planes and rudder and what ap¬
peared to be its engine exhaust. There were no re¬
ported sightings that night.

Shortly after midnight on December 31, more
strange and fast-moving lights were seen over Wor¬
cester. They moved in a zigzag fashion as a red, white
and blue cluster. The lights appeared over Westboro
and Shrewsbury and were last seen, dimly, heading
southeast.

At this point the visitations of the airship dimin¬
ished in New England, but now other parts of the
country began to report sky visitors. All during
January of 1910 lights said to be part of a flying
machine were reported over West Virginia, Tennessee,
Arkansas and Alabama.

By mid-February the airship episode had all but

faded from the public’s mind and Tillinghast was
apparently sequestered in his “secret workshop” to
meet the deadline for exhibiting his aircraft, but it
did not appear at the Boston Aero Show.

In mid-July of 1910, however, Herbert N. Davison
of the Worcester Board of Trade announced that
Tillinghast had indeed constructed an airplane, and
that he, Davison, had actually inspected it, sat in it,
and operated its controls. He said it resembled a huge
boat with wings, powered with an engine of 125 h.p.
It was kept in a suburban barn.

Now Tillinghast resumed his claims of record
flights, all of which he said took place between 10:00
P.M. and daylight of the following morning. He
explained that because of a radical design change —
which was allegedly being sought by airplane manu¬
facturers — all test flights had to be made during dark¬
ness, at least until the patents were tied up. On the
following day the eccentric inventor would announce
the nature of his flight of the previous evening; it
might have been a speed dash to Boston, an endurance
run to Providence, or a new altitude attempt over
Worcester.

In time it became evident that the claims of
Wallace E. Tillinghast were without merit. Although
he had a flying machine of sorts, it was untested. As
fas as could be determined, it never flew — nor did
Tillinghast. The over-zealous engineer, caught up in
the excitement of his dreams, had allowed himself to
be regarded as the pilot of the mysterious night-
flying airship. Nevertheless, the whole Tillinghast
episode was an interesting and imaginative tale that
made Worcester and other New England communities
air-minded — with some help from the mysterious sky
visitor that was quite real, was seen by thousands,
and which unquestionably “flew.”

Although experimental aircraft flights were being
made in 1909, the unusual actions of the strange air¬
ship — which was never clearly seen — cannot be
explained as terrestrial experiments. The 1909 flap
was only one of many that were recorded from 1896
to the present. So, if it wasn’t Tillinghast and his
flying machine, what was it?

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

11. When reporters accosted Tillinghast after the big pre-Christmas sighting, he

a. acted confused, but cooperative

b. hinted at being responsible for the air shows

c. gave them haughty, evasive answers

d. refused to talk and ordered them off his property

12. Tillinghast was cleared of immediate involvement with the aircraft when he

a. was surrounded by newspaper reporters for 48 hours

b. was unable to pilot the craft on Christmas Eve

c. admitted he had made up the whole story

d. was seen in his office while the craft was being observed on December 23

13. When the craft appeared on Christmas Eve,

a. three Wise Men got on their camels and headed east

b. children thought they were seeing Santa Claus

c. theologians proclaimed a Second Coming

d. pranksters set off a barrage of sky rockets

14. When the craft appeared on a collision course with the Park Street Church steeple,

a. it stopped suddenly and turned away

b. people argued that it was an optical illusion

c. it stopped suddenly and hovered there for several minutes

d. it skimmed over the top at the last minute

15. According to one group of observers, the craft’s engine

a. made a “buzzing” sound

b. made a “whirring” sound

c. sounded like an airplane

d. sounded a lot like Tillinghast’s Cadillac engine

16. Tillinghast was pressured to display his craft

a. by Worcester businessmen who were upset by the adverse notoriety
brought to their city

b. by newspaper reporters who wanted to get accurate stories

c. because the public was extremely curious

d. because a grand jury decided he was disturbing the peace

17. On Christmas Day, the airship

a. ' zigzagged over Westboro, Massachusetts

b. hovered one hour over New Haven

c. flew higher than usual

d. made its only daytime appearance

18. When the airship’s visitations to New England ceased,

a. a U.F.O. center was established

b. people never stopped waiting for its return

c. other parts of the country reported sightings

d. every comet or strange light became controversial

19. Tillinghast said he flew only at night because

a. radiation from the sun was harmful to the craft

b. the nocturnal winds were more favorable to efficient performance

c. he was tired of all the publicity his craft had caused

d. he didn’t want his design copied until patents were issued

20. The mysterious airship cannot be explained as a terrestrial experiment because

a. the actions of the craft were unusual

b. there were no experimental aircraft flights being made in 1909

c. many other sightings have been reported from 1913 to the present

d. Tillinghast confessed that he had made it all up

SUCCESS LOG TIMED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(10 points per correct answer)

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Techniques section.

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

At a Glance

T EC H NIQ U ES Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. In the audio portion of the Techniques section we discussed the importance of needing to learn not only-
new reading skills, but also when to use them. We discussed different reading purposes, such as reading for facts or
general ideas, and how the goal you set for reading determines the particular skill you use.

Scanning is the focus of this Techniques section. Learning to survey material quickly to find the answer to a specific
question will save you time! Anticipate wdiat fact(s) you’re looking for, run your eyes quickly over and down a printed
page until you spot your answer(s), and then read the information in context to check your accuracy .

1. Always scan when you want to locate a specific fact or key word. When you have such a definite purpose, slower
reading will only clutter up your thoughts with facts you don’t want or need now. Why waste valuable time? Practice
scanning the following list of phone numbers. Use a pencil to respond to these four statements as fast as you can.

a. Underline the telephone number for G. H. Johnson on Farwell Drive.

b. Underline the address for the two D. O. Johnsons.

c. In the first two columns, underline the four telephone numbers beginning with “221.”

d. In the last column underline the telephone number ending with “0588.”

Johnson B A

2146 Allen blvd Midltn --238-6133

Johnson B A 2009 Pike dr-271-8757

Johnson B Pfeifer Mrs

7C5 Woodward dr--244-0894
Johnson Barbara 855 Woodrow -251-6686

Johnson Barbara J

4849 Sheboygan av- -231-3267
Johnson Barbara Jean 133 Langdon-255-6480
Johnson Barry 5400 Me Kenna rd--221*1773

Johnson Belinda 14 N Mills-257-0044

Johnson Bernadine

5000 Sheboygan av--238*3701
Johnson Bernice E 2313 Rowley av-233-4754

Johnson Bert 436 W Dayton-251-1025

Johnson Bert 5434 Gettle av-238-2954

Johnson Bertha Irene 429 Lily dr--255-0924-

Johnson Betsy ]315 Spring-257-0883

Johnson Beverly 19 N Brearly-255-3610

Johnson Bieber & Kirkhuff attys

411 W Main- -257*4715

Johnson Bill 1009 Vilas av-257-5773

Johnson Bob 1102 Troy dr-241-1796

Johnson Brad C 14 Glacier ct

Madison Wis- -Midltn Tel No 836-8223
Johnson Bradford R 201 Silver rd--244-1936

Johnson Brian M 116 E Gilman-256-2950

Johnson Bruce 140 E Johnson-257-1782

Johnson Bruce B 3301 Leopold Way-274-2136

Johnson Bruce M 9 Adeline cir-256-6605

Johnson Bruce P 146 E Gorham —251-1536
Johnson Bruce R

5310 Mathews rd Middleton--238*4610

Johnson C 316 N Butler-255-6663

Johnson C A 317 Bay View-251-3515

Johnson C Alden Helen Mrs

1555 Adams--256-7113

Johnson C L 909 High-257-1884

Johnson C V 533 W Wash av-255-8287

Johnson Caden 4541 Onyx la-249-3024

Johnson Calvin 442 Jean-256-1380

Johnson Camille 150 Langdon-251-6394

Johnson Candace 2101 Traceway dr-271-7063
Johnson Carin 345 N Sherman av — 241-2673

Johnson Carl 116 S Blair-251-4651

Johnson Carl E

408F Eagle Heights Apts 238-4994

Johnson Carl G 700 Owen rd-222-6876

Johnson Carl V 2132 Kendall av—238-2445

Johnson Carol A 208 Farley av-238-6941

Johnson Cephas C realtor

117 Monona av 256-9011

Res 1029 Spaight-256-0110

Johnson Chas A 701 Hintze rd-244-7701

Johnson Charles Albert

625 Gately ter- 233-3286
Johnson Chas E 30 Belmont rd-244-6473

Johnson Chas H 1650 Sherman av- 244-3104
Johnson Chas H Mrs 111 W Wilson-255-1564
Johnson Chas 0 1814 W Broadway-221-0779

Johnson Chas P

640 Jordon dr McFrlnd--835~5685

Johnson Chas R 1525 Trailsway-244-3727

Johnson Charlna 1341 South-251-4575

Johnson Cheryl D 2101 Post rd-274-0440

Johnson Christian D 201 Valorie la--222-8058
Johnson Chuck 811 Garfield-256-3401

Johnson Clarence E 3334 Tallyho la-238-7591
JOHNSON CLIFF R bldr

942 Pontiac tr-- 274-3688

Johnson Clifford 5007 Monona dr--222-6911

Johnson Clifford C 328 Kedzie-244-0443

Johnson Clifford H 2558 E Johnson-244-1959
Johnson Clifford H 2406 Myrtle-249-7057

Johnson Clifford L

1434 Fremont av--244-6471
Johnson Clinton W

4705 Buckeve rd--222-2002

Johnson Collin B 619 S Orchard-255-0601

Johnson Connie 345 N Sherman av--241-2673
Johnson Conrad H atty

20 N Carroll- 256-1977

Res R2 Lodi -592-4897

Johnson Craig 512 W Wash av- 256-3001

Johnson Curtis 4517 Camden rd — 222-4514

Johnson Curtis 201 Tompkins dr-222-3548

Johnson Curtis L 703 Spruce-256-8274

Johnson Cyrus l< 2417 Center av — 244-6073

Johnson D 1117 Bay Ridge rd -222-9607

Johnson D M 121 N Blair-256-6756

Johnson D 0 1609 Madison ----- 255-7791

Johnson Dale 502 N Frances-251-4207

Johnson Dale A 5514 Brody dr-233-0145

Johnson Dale E 4715 Sheboygan av-238-1715

Johnson Dale M 1901 Kenneth-271-3740

Johnson Dan L

936A Eagle Heights Apts- -238-8809

Johnson Danl 130 N Butler-257*6471

Johnson Danl J 209 S Bassett-257-7208

Johnson David 1558 Simpson-221-2519

Johnson David A 4305 Mohawk dr--271-6897
Johnson David Arthur 1508 Drake 251-2791
Johnson David B

1911 Greenway Cross-- 271-5954

80863 © Wisconsin Telephone Company 1973

Johnson David B Prof

5806 Anchorage av--233-7335

Johnson David H 1901 Carver-257-7886

Johnson David L 307 Bay View-255-2352

Johnson David L 1822 Helene pkwy-271-7564

Johnson David M R2 Waunakee-849-4930

Johnson David M cert pub acctnt

30 W Mifflin--257-2532
Johnson David N 1826 Camelot dr--238-3005

Chldrn 1826 Camelot dr-238-3006

Johnson David W 519 Northport dr-241-3646
Johnson Daward 1225 Rutledge — 255-8030

Johnson Dayton 515 N Lake-257-1537

Johnson Debbie 316 N Butler-251-7986

Johnson Deborah L 502 N Frances--257-6799
Johnson Dennis H

4609 Academy dr--222-9095
Johnson Dennis R

2127 Bashford av--249-9356
Johnson Dennis Roger 214 Harding-241-3168

Johnson Diane 1012 Emerald- 255-6289

Johnson Diane R 604 Buick-255-8746

Johnson Don N 1426 Rae la-271-3558

Johnson Don V 637 S Orchard-251-1174

Johnson Donald B Ri

Stoughton--Me Frlnd Tel No 838-3222
Johnson Donald D atty 1 W Main- 256-9046

Res 4235 Wanda pi-271-3796

Johnson Donald E

10 Dorfmeister ct--221-1197
Johnson Donald Elton

5813 Crabapple la--271-7984

Johnson Donald J 319 Oriole la-241-1884

Johnson Donald James

5310 Milward dr--271-9356
Johnson Donald Jos 1402 Regent — 257-1851
Johnson Donald l<

4305 Portland pkwy-- 249-8077
Johnson Donald W 653 S Segoe rd--271-7948

Johnson Donna 2811 Monroe- 233-6381

Johnson Doris 4801 Sheboygan av--238-0734

Johnson Doug 912 E Gorham-257-5720

Johnson Doug 265 Langdon- 257-6995

Johnson Douglas 227 Langdon-251-1031

Johnson Douglas A

5701 Anchorage av--238-1785
Johnson Douglas D 514 W Main- 257-1970

Johnson Douglas M

2620 Fairfield pi-- 244-8450
Johnson Douglas 0

6101 Eagle Heights Apts--238-7828

Johnson Duane 336 W Doty-256-3433

Johnson Duane 3802 Lien rd- 244-7497

Johnson Duane A 3633 Dawes-249-9307

Johnson Duane H 1912 Sheridan-244-4307

Johnson Dudley L 221 Merry-249-9152

Johnson Dwayne I 318 Island dr —231-2194
Johnson Dwight A Dr podtrst

2084 Atwood av--244-1772

Res 406 Gunderson-244-9108

Johnson E L 126 Division-244-8671

Johnson E M 4922 Raymond rd-271-7045

Johnson Earl 201 Merry-244-2884

Johnson Ed 1021 Columbia rd-233-9292

Johnson Eddie L 2209 Cypress Way-255-8206
Johnson Edith J 624 West Shore dr-256-1226
Johnson Edmund B

4614 Mineral Point rd--233-9301

Johnson Edw P 904 Dane- 257-3249

Johnson Edwin 409 Miller av-244-2551

Johnson Edwin A 4319 Monona dr--222-6111
Johnson Edwin D

201L Eagle Heights Apts--238-2506

Johnson Elaine 2848 Coolidge-249-8636

Johnson Eleanor E 324V2 W Wilson-256-1159
Johnson Elery

1330 North Stoughton rd--249-4507

Johnson Elizabeth 407 W Doty-255-1109

Johnson Elliott A Mrs

104 Davidson 222-2247

Johnson Elmer E Dr

4513 Vernon blvd 233-1901

Johnson Elmer M 950 Lake ct-257-1355

Johnson Eric H 1106 S Park-251-7566

Johnson Eric W 2506 Me Divitt rd--271-7139
Johnson Erling M hearng aids

109 King--256-8503

Res 5502 Raymond rd -271-8425

Johnson Ernest 3837 Dennett dr-244-9013

Johnson Ernest G 1929 Heath av — 249-7560
Johnson Ernest L 113 Quaker cir— 222-5155
Johnson Ernest R

2640 Chamberlain av- 238-0602

Johnson Ervin B R 1 Packers av-244-7406

Johnson Esther Mrs Syene rd-271-4704

Johnson Esther M Mrs

540 W Olin av--255-5904
Johnson Everett F Dr dentst

222 N Midvale blvd--233-9000

Res 1205 Farwell dr-244-6383

Johnson Everette 4317 Daisy dr -271-4262

Johnson Florence 1339 E Wilson — 255-3005
Johnson Florida M 110 E Dayton - 251-3897
Johnson Fran L 1513 Cameron dr--271-7334
Johnson Frank Mrs 2551 Hoard-244-3869

Johnson Frank N 2305 S Park-257-0367

JOHNSON FRANK N ofc

448 W Wash av 256-2656

Res 2701 Sommers av-244-9582

Johnson Fred 2201 Cypress Way-257-6474

Johnson Freddie 1031 Williamson--255-6333
Johnson Frederick J 1331 Morrison-255-1315

Johnson G D 2901 Curry pkwy-274-2361

Johnson G M 240 Bunting la-249-0736

Johnson G M 414 N Segoe rd-233-3764

Johnson Gary F 1302 Ruskin-244-2943

Johnson Gary L 6415 Bridge rd-221-2196

Johnson Gary V

2110 Westchester rd- 271-2092
Johnson Geo E 437 Presidential la- 238-7523

Johnson Geo F 4610 Ferris av-222*4593

Johnson Geo H 639 Farwell dr-244-1375

Johnson Geo M 2545 E Johnson-244-4500

Johnson Geo 0 509 Elmside blvd — 244-0272
Johnson Geo W Mrs

745 W Wash av--256-2025

Johnson Gerald 1009 Vilas av-257-9739

Johnson Gerald A 202 Silver rd-249-1400

Johnson Gerald J 1130 View rd-222-3573

Johnson Gerald S

2413 Cypress Way - 256-4775
Johnson Geraldine Mrs

519 Jonquil la- 256-7575
Johnson Glen S 2318 E Wash av — 244-0137
Johnson Glenn A Jr

1630 Wyoming Way- -244-5873

Johnson Glenn H 5406 Harold-222-0798

Johnson Gordon C

4617 Tonyawatha tr--222-2232
Johnson Gordon Duane

745 W Wash av- -256-2025

Johnson Gordon H 1 Parklawn pi-233-4191

Johnson Gordon l<

656 Knickerbocker--233-1598
Johnson Gordon L Mrs 225 Division-244-9174
Johnson Graham U travl agt

520 Univ av--257*5555

Res 615 Farwell dr -244-0244

Johnson Grant C

404D Eagle Heights Apts- -238-4516
Johnson Greg 2517 Granada Way — 271-4986
Johnson Gregg W 1713 Camus la--238-3984

Johnson Gregg W 1531 Simpson -221-2150

Johnson Gregory L 203 Owen rd — 222-0537
Johnson Gregory M 350 Raven la — 249-0862
Johnson Griff Evans

707Q Eagle Heights Apts- -231-3158
Johnson Gunda 4622 Dutch Mill rd-222-4375

Johnson Gunnar 603 Falcon cir-222-4642

Johnson H C 2333 Superior-249-6763

Johnson H Dewey 4609 Wallace av-222-1517

Johnson H E 1303 Vilas av-255-9502

Johnson Harley E 826 W Badger rd-251-1694

Johnson Harold 113 S Mills -251-0888

Johnson Harold A 417 Bryce Canyon cir

Mdsn--Midltn Tel No 836-8701
Johnson Harold A

4122 Manitou Way--233-3611
Johnson Harold D 5009 Gordon av--222-7343
Johnson Harold G 5112 Maher av — 221-1627
Johnson Harold J 3545 Concord av 249-1385
Johnson Harold J 2416 E Wash av-249-5236
Johnson Harold L 5318 Arapahoe la-244-3680

Johnson Harry J 310 N Butler-255-6451

Johnson Harry S 2 Sherman ter-249-5725

Johnson Harvey 4205 Milw-244-3228

JOHNSON HEARING AID CENTER

109 King- - 256-8503

Johnson Helen E

2225 West Lawn av--256-0016
Johnson Henry H

2530 Commonwealth av--233-8031
Johnson Herbert E 1025 Emerald--255-2896
Johnson Howard A 4337 Herrick la-233-5604
Johnson Howard C 2353 Allied dr- - 274-2212
Johnson Howard E

4333 Britta pkwy--271-9164

JOHNSON HOWARD RESTAURANTS—

902 Ann- 255-4685

4838 E Wash av- 249-7314

Johnson I J 540 W Olin av-256-5820

Johnson I Z 2617 E Johnson-241-1879

JOHNSON INSULATING CO

2046 Pennsylvania av- - 244-5646
Johnson Irving B

5013 Hammersley rd--27i-7310
Johnson Isabell D 421 Hilltop dr—231-2630

Johnson J 680 W Badger rd-257-5441

Johnson J A 726 E Johnson-251-4150

Johnson J Brent 4530 Aztec Trail--271-4610

Johnson J E 225 S Whitney Way--233-5166

Johnson J L 317 Island dr-233-3283

Johnson J M

2950 Tomahawk ct Midltn- 238-8327

Johnson J R 202 Candle Lite ct-271-5895

Johnson J Robt 560 Glen dr-238-0308

Johnson J S 817 W Lakeside--256-2816

Johnson J Scott 1346 Rutledge-251-7789

Johnson J W 6429 Bridge rd-221-1981

Johnson J W 4303 Monona dr-222-8834

MADISON 111 JOH—JOH

Johnson Jack 112 S Orchard-256-5157

Johnson Jack L 206 W Lakeview av-222-2524

Johnson James 2341 Carling dr-271-8847

Johnson James A 321 Belmont rd — 244-2870
Johnson James A

71 Lakewood Gardens la--249-6328

Johnson James C 2109 Fox av-257-2111

Johnson James D 135 N Hancock — 251-7025

Johnson James J 3912 Dempsey rd-221-2632

Johnson James L

5422 E Buckeye rd - 222-0563
Johnson James L

1330 N Stoughton rd- 244-4287

Johnson James L 1133 View rd -222-2979

Johnson James Leon

1290 Waubesa Beach rd - 222-4565
Johnson James N 2001 Leland dr — 274-3762
Johnson James R

1317 N Wingra dr- -256-8941
Johnson James R 1710 Winnebago-244-6816
Johnson James S 3426 Marcy rd — 249-1358

Teenagers 3426 Marcy rd -249-2737

Johnson James Soren 16 Langdon — 251-0573
Johnson James W

2309 Cypress Way--257-4946

Johnson Jan 5726 Balsam rd -274-3716

Johnson Jan E 104 S Brooks -251-8163

Johnson Jason A 5705 Cove cir-222-2248

JOHNSON JASON JEWELER

2086 Atwood av- - 244-3178
Johnson Jay Scott

503J Eagle Heights Apts --238-5664
Johnson Jean E 417 Ogden -249-3070

Johnson Jeanette 2238 Eton Ridge-233-4434
Johnson Jeanette Pugh

5601 Groveland--222-1276

Johnson Jeanne 152 E Gorham -257-7441

Johnson Jeanne V 2301 S Park -257-3565

Johnson Jeffery J 205 Gannon av-- 249-1234

Johnson Jeffrey L 1402 Regent-257-6846

Johnson Jennie B 2039 E Johnson--249-2383
Johnson Jerry F 5313 Chinook la — 249-3985
Johnson Jerry F 5505 Gouchcr la- 222-1573
Johnson Joan M

701 Pirate Island rd 221-2429
Johnson JoAnn Mrs 201 Valorie la--222-8058

Johnson Jody 204 St Teresa ter-222-6874

Johnson John B 4122 Dwight dr --244-0152
Johnson John Clifford

3309 Grandview blvd --271-1287
Johnson John E Prof

1214 Wellesley rd--238-0526

Johnson John E H 101 Glen hy-238-6653

Johnson John I 606 Gary -222-8963

Johnson John M 2410 Calypso rd-241-1897

Johnson John M 3422 Lexington av-244-5898

Johnson John IM 2453 Hoard-244-7514

Johnson John W 400 Powers av-249-6348

Johnson Jominda J 2313 Rowley av-233-4754

Johnson Jon W 820 Jenifer-255-1127

Johnson Judy 137 E Gorham-255-9272

Johnson Julian 50 Whitcomb cir-274-3546

Johnson Julie 601 N Henry-257-4578

Johnson Julie A 104 S Brooks-251-8163

Johnson June E 210 S Bassett-255-6530

Johnson K A 4913 Ascot la-238-7470

Johnson K I 2019 Pike dr-271-1945

Johnson Kathy 4817 Sheboygan av -238-0355
Johnson Kay 2231 Woodview ct -- 255-8302
Johnson Kaye Ellen

1312 St James ct -257-0650

Johnson Keith 1402 Regent-256-0588

Johnson Keith A 5710 Forsythia pl-238-6129

Johnson Ken 1530 Adams-251-1190

Johnson Ken R 415 W Wilson-255-7685

Johnson Kenneth 2861 Coho-274-1192

Johnson Kenneth 2642 Park pi-238-6172

Johnson Kenneth D

1310 Delaware blvd - 244-0562
Johnson Kenneth G

1026 Sherman av- -255-5213
Johnson Kenneth L

4920 Woodburn dr--271-2020
Johnson Kenneth R

4925 Fond du Lac tr- 238-1773

Johnson Kent 5530 Telsa ter-233-1518

Johnson Kent C 4838 Marathon dr 231-2015

Johnson Kim 421 Walton pi-249-4964

Johnson L A 2104 Packers av-244-3476

Johnson L L 2705 Granada Way-274*3023

Johnson Lance 2121 Univ av-238-7742

Johnson Larry 444 Hawthorne ct-251-5520

Johnson Larry E 2009 Northport dr-241-1779
Johnson Larry E 424 N Pinckney — 255-5894
Johnson Lars

202B Eagle Heights Apts--238-4149

Johnson Laurie 626 Langdon-251-9291

Johnson Laverne H

502 Hummingbird la- -222-4374
Johnson Lawrence 729 Mayer av --244-9165
Johnson Lawrence A 1301 Spring --- 256-1496

2. Read question e that precedes the Kettle Moraine article. Then scan the material to find the answer. Record your
answer. No key is provided for these types of questions since the answers may be easily found in the selection.

Maxwell, Jess E., “Wisconsin’s Kettle Moraine,” Reprinted with permission of

e. What is the annual snowfall in the Kettle Moraine area?

Some 20,000 years ago, a giant glacier cut through
southeastern Wisconsin, leaving behind a hilly, wood¬
ed, lake-studded region.

Today, this area is called the Kettle Moraine State
Forest. It is considered by many to be the best cross¬
country ski region in the Midwest.

That’s saying a lot when you consider that middle
America is loaded with terrain similar to Scandinavia,
where ski touring originated — like Michigan’s rolling,
remote Upper Peninsula or Minnesota’s rugged, rocky
Arrowhead country.

But Wisconsin’s Kettle Moraine, located near Mil¬
waukee, is a totally unique region with many interest¬
ing possibilities for Nordic skiing. Only one other area
in the world can equal its glacial features and
deposits — and that’s in North Dakota, which doesn’t
have the snow, terrain, or population to rate as a
top-notch X-C region. . . .

So, in the Kettle Moraine’s state forest areas, you
have 34,000 acres of hills, rocks, boulders, lakes,
springs, ridges, forests, streams, and other things like
historical markers, campgrounds, shelters, and scenic
overlooks. Add to that about 50 inches of annual
snowfall, and you have one super X-C region — with
nine major trails that range from easy to “What the
hell am I doing here!”

Actually, the Kettle Moraine State Forest is divided
into two units: the northern unit, near Campbells-
port, about an hour and a half north of Milwaukee;
and the southern unit, near Eagle, about an hour
southwest of Milwaukee.

f. What are the outstanding features of the Kettle Moraine area?

Now read question/. If you already know the answer, you probably scanned too slowly in looking for the answer
to question e. Follow this same procedure for the rest of the articles, being sure to record you answers. Find an
answer to the first question and then use the second question as a check to see how efficiently you scanned. In each
case you should not have found the answer to the second question if you’re scanning effectively.

Greenburg, A1 (Ed.)- “Editorial Musings.” Reprinted with permission

g. Which mountain cities have an occasional drought?

At any Alpine resort, you could always run into
Americans from the Far West and even an occasional
wanderer from the mountain states. For that matter,
at Snowbird two years ago, I ran into a couple of
Frenchmen from Grenoble. Skiers don’t travel just
for bargains. They’re constantly looking for new
experiences, and with the high cost of skiing world¬
wide, price is often not an overriding consideration.

I’ve been on ski vacations in Europe and the
Rockies, in New England, and even (once) in the
Midwest. I can’t say that each was a pleasurable
experience. Where things didn’t pan out, invariably
weather was the biggest factor. If you’re just playing
percentages, the Rockies would have to get the nod.
But snow droughts are not unknown at Aspen, Taos,
Sun Valley, or even Alta. And beautiful snow is
possible at any ski area anywhere.

Europe’s successive bad snow years, in fact, may
influence more skiers to opt for the Rockies than
the devaluation. On the other hand, if the snow is
poor out West and Europe is blessed with abundant
powder, the pendulum would swing the other way.

h. What is the main idea of these paragraphs?

“Down and Squawking.” FAA Aviation News.Maich, 1973.

i. How many of the rescued persons are found shortly after going down? _

However, it is not only Alaskan pilots who can
benefit from the ELT. Figures from the Aerospace
Rescue and Recovery Service indicate that the pro¬
blem of missing airplanes occurs all across the land.

With the general use of the ELT in the continental
United States there is an excellent chance that all
missing aircraft will be located, and located quickly.

An FAA study has shown that 50% of all persons
retrieved alive from downed aircraft situations are
recovered within the first 12 hours of going down,
and another 25% are recovered within the next 12
hours. The probability of safe recovery dwindles
sharply after that.

Unfortunately there can be delays in the search

process. In many cases an emergency is not identified
until the aircraft is reported as overdue at its destina¬
tion, and thus many hours may elapse before a report
is made. There might be further delays while a check
is made of other airports to determine whether the
pilot may have landed safely. Only after this check is
made is the Civil Air Patrol alerted to begin its search.
If the downed plane does not have an ELT on board,
the search area can cover hundreds of square miles.
If a pilot on a flight plan has an ELT on board, search
planes can immediately head in his direction.

j. Which pilots benefit most from the use of the ELT? _

k. Describe the mail pouch that the first Pony Express rider carried.

Down on Second Street in St. Joseph, Missouri, just
across the street from Patee Park, at 5:00 p.m., April 3,
1860, the doors of the famous old Pike’s Peak livery barn
were suddenly thrown open and out through its portals
came John W. “Billy” Richardson on a coal black steed
which was to help mark the beginning of one of the
world’s most thrilling means of communicaton.

As the doors of the old livery barn swung open that day,
a cannon boomed, flags were flying everywhere, and a
vast concourse of people broke into a mighty roar of
shouts and tumult to speed the first Pony Express rider
on his way out into the great American wilderness.

Dashing through the crowd for a few blocks, the first
leather pouch with its famous four pockets thrown across
the pommel of the rider’s saddle, in but a few moments
the horse was springing from the bank to the steam ferry
which at once began chugging away for the Kansas side.
As the boat reached the western shore, the bell clanged,
the gate was down and the intrepid rider sped away into
the vast reaches beyond.

Out over the great stretches of Kansas prairie, across
the Big Blue, on up the Little Blue, over the sandhills to
the far reaches of the Platte dashed forward the “Fast
Mail” to the western coast.

With the Pony Express “a nation was riding that
night.” About every ten miles a “way” station (where the
rider changed horses), was located at a spring or stream,
and about every 50 miles a “home” station where the
riders could sleep, had been established — clear across
the western continent along the Old Oregon and
California trails.

1. Which trails did the Pony Express route follow?.

m. What are the three reasons that a large percentage of a snail’s offspring are destroyed?

The small shortage has been created by pollution and
growing world consumption of the great French delicacy
that has been described by the skittish as tasting like bits
of rubber baked in garlic.

The French still export 72 tons a year, much of it to the
United States. But not one of those snails ever has
crawled on French soil.

French export companies spend $38 million a year
bringing in raw snails from 19 countries — including
Turkey, Albania, Yugoslavia and Romania. They cook
and package these foreign snails for sale at home and
abroad.

In a display of trickery little short of scandalous, some
restaurateurs have solved the shortage by filling the
reusable shells in which snails are served with bits of beef
lung in garlic butter — an outrage illegal in France.

The French government has enlisted the aid of Pierre
Tochon of the French Research Institute for Agriculture
and Breeding of Small Animals.

Tochon says native French snails have been practically
wiped out by the use of insecticides and lack of
conservation laws. The few hundred now collected by
private French citizens are strictly for home
consumption.

Hibernation is part of the problem. In nature, snails
hibernate from November to April. The females lay eggs
only once or twice a year. And a large percentage of one
snail’s 80 to 120 offspring are destroyed by cold weather,
insecticides or rodents.

Researcher Raoul Peyre says the reproduction rate can
be accelerated by maintaining the snails at about 72
degrees temperature and 80 percent humidity. Under
such conditions, their hibernation cycles could be
shortened and reproductive cycles lengthened.

He says snails could be made to lay eggs, sleep a month,
then wake again for two months to lay more eggs. They
could reproduce four times a year instead of once or
twice.

n. Where do the French export companies get their raw snails?

o. Where does the alfalfa go after it leaves the feeders?

Are you familiar with the dehydration of alfalfa
process? Here’s the way it works: Forage harvesters cut
and chop the green alfalfa in the field while the moisture
is 75-80%. The wet alfalfa is then trucked to the
dehydration plant and dumped into feeders. The feeders
convey the alfalfa into the dehydration drums which
remove the excess moisture by the use of high
temperatures fired by natural gas. This allows the alfalfa
chops to be conveyed to hammermills which process the
chops into meal.

The meal is then conveyed to pellet mills which
produce the final product. The moisture at this time is
8%. The dehydrated alfalfa pellets are ready for bulk
shipment via rail or truck or to be stored for future
delivery.

Dehydrated alfalfa pellets are one of the many feed
ingredients that are used in complete rations for cattle,
hogs, poultry, sheep and horses. In addition, dehydrated
alfalfa pellets may be fed direct under certain conditions.

p. What is the moisture content of an alfalfa pellet?

3. Using a pencil, answer the following three questions ( q, r, and s) as fast as you can. Use a watch with a second hand to
time yourself for each part. Check your answers later by reviewing the material more slowly.

q. On the list below underline each state that is located in the far North of the United States.

Albuquerque, New Mexico
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Bismark, North Dakota
Boise, Idaho
Charleston, Arkansas
Charleston, West Virginia
Durham, North Carolina
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Freeport, Illinois
Glasgow, Montana
Globe, Arizona
Jackson, Mississippi
Las Vegas, Nevada
Los Angeles, California

Madison, Wisconsin
North Platte, Nebraska
Northwood, Iowa
Norton, Kansas
Ocean City, Maryland
Portland, Maine
Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Pueblo, Colorado
Reno, Nevada
St. Louis, Missouri
Seattle, Washington
Vicksburg, Mississippi
Virginia, Minnesota
Waddingtoon, New York
York, South Carolina

r. Review the above list again and check each city that is located on the East Coast.

s. Listed below at the left are all the cities one traveler has visited. In the box to the right, certain countries are given.
Compare the lists and underline each country in the box that the traveler has been to. Go as fast as you can.

Cities the traveler visited

Countries

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Argentina

Mexico

Athens, Greece

Australia

Mongolia

Barcelona, Spain

Austria

Netherlands

Bonn, West Germany

Belgium

New Guinea

Brindisi, Italy

Chile

Norway

Brussels, Belgium

China

Nova Scotia

Caracas, Venezuela

Crete

Pakistan

Candia, Crete

Cuba

Peru

Copenhagen, Denmark

Czechoslovakia

Phillippines

Helsinki, Finland

Denmark

Poland

Lima, Peru

England

Portugal

Lisbon, Portugal

Finland

Puerto Rico

London, England

France

Russia

Nice, France

Germany

South Africa

Prague, Czechoslovakia

Greece

Spain

Santiago, Chile

India

Sudan

Split, Yugoslavia

Iran

Switzerland

Vienna, Austria

Israel

Turkey

Warsaw, Poland

Italy

Venezuela

Zurich, Switzerland

Korea

Yugoslavia

4. See how quickly you can scan the lines of the article below for all words that are unfamiliar to you. Underline them
with a pencil as fast as you can. Most people, not in the medical field, will find approximately 15 unfamiliar words.

Gray, Henry, Anatomy of the Human Body , (29th ed.),
Charles M. Goss (Ed.). Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger, 1973.

The medial intermuscular septum (septum inter -
musculare [humeri] mediate) is attached to the
medial supracondylar ridge and extends from the
medial epicondyle distally, to the Teres major and
Latissimus dorsi insertions, proximally. Some of the
fibers of the Triceps originate on its dorsal surface
and some of the Brachialis on its ventral surface. It is
pierced, near the epicondyle, by the ulnar nerve and
superior ulnar collateral artery. The medial septum
appears very much thicker than the lateral because
the axillary sheath, containing the main vessels and
nerves of the arm, blends with its ventral surface, and
the nerves and vessels continue this close association
down to the elbow. The two intermuscular septa and
the investing fascia of the posterior aspect of the arm
form the posterior or extensor compartment which
contains the Triceps, radial nerve, and profunda

artery. The anterior or flexor compartment contains
the Biceps, Brachialis, part of the Coracobrachialis,
the brachial vessels, and the median and ulnar nerves.
The relationship of the investing fascia to the muscles
is different on the dorsal and ventral aspects of the
arm. That over the Triceps is adherent to the muscle
and is used in part for its origin. That over the
Biceps is separated from the muscle by a distinct
fascial cleft which is continued around the deep
surface of the muscle, also separating it from the
Brachialis. The ventral investing fascia, medially, just
distal to the middle of the arm, is pierced by the
basilic vein.

The Coracobrachialis (Fig. 6-36), the smallest of
the three muscles in this region, is situated at the
upper and medial part of the arm. It arises from the
apex of the coracoid process, in common with the

short head of the Biceps brachii, and from the inter¬
muscular septum between the two muscles; it is
inserted by means of a flat tendon into an impression
at the middle of the medial surface and border of the
body of the humerus between the origins of the
Triceps brachii and Brachialis. It is perforated by the
musculocutaneous nerve.

Proceed to the Flexible reading and read the directions.

Flex Your Mental Muscles

FLEXIBLE READING

Discussion. “Computer Art” — the article that you’re going to read next — probably contains some facts and figures
that are entirely new to you. We hope so. Push through it as rapidly as possible, with this in mind.

Be ready to answer 5 questions instead of 10. The questions for the selections are always similar. Some are designed to
test your general understanding and some test your recall of facts. Almost always, they test your literal comprehension.
But occasionally we’ll ask for interpretations too. Literal comprehension is essential to getting anything from what you
read. Interpretation is a much more personal matter. Largely it depends on what you know before you read and how you
put it all together.

Directions. Press the joystick button when you begin and again when you finish. Hopefully you’ll get four out of five
questions right.

Cross, Wilbur. “Computer Art.” Reprinted with permission of TWA Ambassador
Magazine, March, 1974, pp. 14-15. © 1974 by Trans World Airlines, Inc.

At a recent industrial design exhibit, two fabric
patterns were displayed, quite similar in appeal and
quality. Visitors were not surprised to learn it had
taken an artist some 300 hours to design one of the
patterns.

But the other had been produced, along with over
100 variations, in less than one minute — by a
computer.

But was it really art?

You have to take creative computers seriously if
you have any faith in such well-established authorities
as the Smithsonian Institution or the Museum of
Modern Art in New York City, where computer art
has been exhibited, and well received by critics.

From the sublime to the ridiculous, computers can
speak pig-Latin, give a five-minute imitation of a
10-piece orchestra, redesign all the pictures in your
room, tell you how many times the word “Lord” is
used in the Bible , and create salable art work.

Completely serious on the subject, the author of a
recently published book. Art and the Future , claims,
“The computer represents the ultimate creative tool
for the artist-engineer-scientist, the ultimate fusion.”

Although not much exposed to the general public,
the computer’s experiments with making-like-artists
go back more than a decade. In the early 1960s, film¬
makers began enlisting the aid of machines to see
what they could do with animation. If you happened
to visit Expo ’67 in Montreal, you may recall seeing a
film, Man and His World. It was animated by a com¬
puter. One of the obvious advantages of using a
machine is that literally thousands of frames can be
sketched in the time that it would take human hands
to prepare half a dozen.

Skeptics of the computer’s talents can check a local
library for a copy of an unusual book, Cybernetic
Serendipity , a handsome volume originally published
by Motif Editions, London. It reproduces some dra¬
matic examples of art by computer. One intriguing
study, “Running Cola Is Africa,” shows the artistic
transition of a running man merging into a bottle of
cola that, in turn, is transformed into a map of
Africa. One of the more provocative designs, selected
for the book’s jacket, is described as — are you ready
for this? — “X-ray Crystallography of the Molecular
Structure of Chicken Fat.”

Art is one thing, something you already associate
with mechanical devices to some extent, such as
metal rules and compasses and light boxes. But what
about the more intangible creative fields, like poetry?

Margaret , are you saddening

Above the windy jumbles of the tide?

Wave to me in the peace of the night.

Jealousy is not all;

It is not refreshment or water.

These may not be the most inspired lines ever
written, yet there is a certain plaintiveness and mood.
Surprisingly so, considering this is one example from
a thin, published volume, Erato. The author? An IBM
360/50 computer, whose normal function was to cope
with budget figures and chemical formulations, until
an English professor at Cleveland State University,
Louis T. Milac, transformed it into a mechanical
Milton.

Can a computer really create poetry? In the future
it may well be possible. At present, the machine
serves as a link in a creative process.

In the case of Erato , says Milac, “the procedure
for generating these poems is quite simple.” He
selected lines of poetry from Whitman, Yeats, Auden
and others and fed them into the computer, along
with 500 numbers splashed at random and a list of
key words the machine could substitute for words in
the quoted lines. The computer then chose one num¬
ber to determine how many lines the poem would
have, a set of numbers to select lines of poetry from
its “inventory,” and a second set to pick out key
words to substitute for existing words.

The process is so fast the computer can turn out
more than 1,000 poems in the time it takes the
operator to push the starter button and remove his
finger.

Milac is the first to admit that inspiring computers
to compose poetry is “an awkward and unnecessary
way of doing things, like eating spaghetti with imple¬
ments a yard long.” You’re not alone if you laugh
the whole thing off, as did one author who quipped
that programming a computer for poetry was like
feeding neckties into a Waring blender.

Don’t laugh too uproariously, though. Computers
have already made so many inroads in the field of
creative arts that entire catalogues have been pub¬
lished to record works that are the joint products of
machines and man. Among the entries are not only
art and poetry, but music, foreign-language diction¬
aries, sound-and-light dramatic scripts, still photo¬
graphy, motion-picture sequences, variations on dance
steps, animation of comic strips and — admittedly
imaginative — weather forecasts.

Computers are especially creative in music. Dr.
John R. Pierce, director of research for Bell Labora¬
tories, says, “A digital computer as a source of se¬

quence of numbers, together with not very compli¬
cated equipment for turning this sequence of num¬
bers into an electric wave that can drive a loud¬
speaker, is truly the universal instrument — the instru¬
ment which can, in principle, create any sound that
can be created ...”

It’s no great surprise that a machine composed
“Music from Mathematics,” a score later published
by Decca. But would you believe a computer could
actually perform live? This feat was demonstrated
by a Bendix G-15, as “middle musician,” performing
in a composition entitled “Three-Part Music With a
Computer as One Part,” assisted by humans on oboe
and bass viol.

“The computer,” reported one review, “sounds
like an organ playing a flute duet. The pitch is rela¬
tive and the timing more precise than a metronome.”

Computers are great mimics. Musicians love to tell
about the one trained to be a reincarnation of
Stephen Foster. How? Simply by force-feeding it
hundreds of elements from the musical scores of the
late composer. The results almost incited a riot. Con¬
firmed Foster buffs, who claimed to know every last
note their idol had ever written, recognized the music
as “pure Foster,” but were frustrated to tears when
they failed to identify the composition by name,
date or subject.

This episode opened up a knotty legal question:
can you educate your favorite computer to digest
random hit tunes and piece them together again and
market the resulting compositions without being sued
for copyright infringement? Well, you might, but
then you would have no legal rights to the “new”
tunes.

“Unless a human being is the author of a work,”
reports the U.S. Copyright Office, “we cannot con¬
sider registration of a claim to copyright.”

Yet there are plenty of other creative fields to
conquer. Just last summer, the fairly conservative
Wall Street Journal went so far as to report in front¬
page headlines: “Latest Machines See, Hear, Speak
and Sing — And May Outthink Man.” Reference was
to the ever-improving capability of computers to
mimic man’s vocal cords.

Already, a computer at the University of Utah has
managed to remove the interference from a 50-year-
old recording of Enrico Caruso so that “the magnifi¬
cent tenor voice emerges from the loudspeakers with
all the sparkle of high-fidelity sound.”

If you have a yen to hear what a mechanical brain
may be thinking, you can now sit down, at any one of
numerous labs across the country, and converse with
a computer. “Air the heavens, we have seen the light,”
one might well say to you with evangelical fervor,
quoting from a philosophical work of its own
creation. “God is in gear. All come!”

Like people, computers can be many personalities,
ranging from highly intellectual to simple, earthy, fun-
loving types. The brainier ones have analyzed pre-
Columbian pottery, researched a social history of
Boston, and proved that Shakespeare had a collabora¬
tor. Then, there was the Datatron that whipped up a
Tin Pan Alley tune lovingly referred to as “Push¬

button Bertha.” Other light-hearted models will
compose a limerick for your birthday, spew forth a
collection of puns and jokes, or concoct recipes for
bar drinks no one has ever heard of before.

As one computer boasted, aloud, “You cannot
drain me, I am tapped into the creative warehouses
of mankind. And the libraries of the universe.”

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1 .

2 .

The author of Art and the Future recently proclaimed that

a. computer art could never be unique

b. computer art would never be worth anything

c. the computer had no place in creative art

d. the computer was the ultimate creative tool

When it comes to computer poetry, the author of the selection feels that

a. truly creative work may be possible in the future

b. truly creative work is beyond the scope of the computer

c. the computer amounts only to a mimic

d. computers have already created master works

The author says that in the time it takes to turn it on, the computer can turn out

a. a dozen poems

b. 1,000 poems

c. hundreds of rhymes

d. endless lines of uninspired doggerel

4. Computers are especially creative in

a. art

b. music

c. comedy

d. creative dramatics

5. What interesting legal questions did one episode with a mimicking computer raise:

a. Who owns computer-made materials?

b. Can you feed original material into a computer?

c. Can you request any personal information from computers?

d. Can you market computer arrangements without violating copyrights?

SUCCESS LOG FLEXIBLE READING

READING SPEED _

COMPREHENSION SCORE_

(10 points per correct answer)

WPM

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

READING PROGRESS GRAPH

Directions

UNIT 3

READING EFFICIENCY INDEX.

1. Refer to the three Unit 3 Success Log Boxes and enter in the computer your three reading rates and three comprehen¬
sion scores, as the screen directs.

2. Record your Unit 3 REI above and on the REI Record page in the back of your Workbook.

3. Press QQ31 to load the Reading Progress Graph. While the graph loads, read “To Your Advantage” below.

TO YOUR ADVANTAGE

How did you do with the scanning technique? You may need to practice it some more before you are comfortable
with it. While you won’t need to use scanning every time you read, when you do, it will save you invaluable time. The
activities in this unit make clear how much you can benefit from turning your personal reading into extra practice.
Magazines, newspapers, junk mail, cereal boxes — anything at all can be helpful. Read it fast and stretch out your
speed.

Your reasons for taking this course and what you want to get from it are as personal as what you like to read.
Another personal matter: Some exercises will be easy for you, some harder. As we’ve suggested, extra practice can
help.

The important thing to remember: You don’t have to be equally good at every part of this course to profit from it
personally. Make your best effort on each unit. And make it work to your advantage.

4. Enter your Pretest and Units 1-3 RETs when the screen prompts you to do so. (Obtain these from the REI Record
page in your Workbook.) Press after each entry.

5. Press

START

to view your graph.

UNIT 4

DISCOVERING YOUR POTENTIAL

• To begin Unit 4 complete the steps in the STARTING UP section.

• Be sure you have inserted Cassette 2 with Side 2 up.

• After listening to the audio segment, turn to the Warm-up and read the directions.

WARM-UP EXERCISE

Directions. Get warmed-up and concentrating in this exercise. Look for a synonym of the initial word instead of just
matching it. For example, if the initial word is fast , the correct answer would be quick from among the choices: slow, fast,
run, quick, and quack.

Identifying synonyms is more difficult than matching, so you may want to set your Reading Window Rate at 60 to begin
the exercise. As you become familiar with the activity, increase your speed as usual. Try repeating the exercise to gain
more confidence at higher speeds. Always push the joystick button to start and to indicate each answer. Record your
results below.

WARM UP EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY MINUTES

SCORE _

SECOND TRY MINUTES

SCORE _

Note: Record the tape counter setting in the space provided at the beginning of the Phrase-reading exercise.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE Tape Counter Setting_

■j

Directions. We’ve just talked about learning to see and process more information with each eye stop. To practice this
skill, try to fixate only once on each phrase as it occurs in the Reading Window. Set your words-per-minute rate fast
enough so you can only pause very briefly at each stop. Also, concentrate on the ideas as they are presented, and try to
predict what some words are based on the context in which they occur.

Enter your wpm rate—make a modest increase over Unit 3—and push the joystick button when you are ready to begin.
Record your rate below.

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY READING SPEED _

SECOND TRY READING SPEED _

WPM

Note: Record the tape counter setting in the space provided at the beginning of the Paced reading.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

Pacing Yourself

PACED READING

Tape Counter Setting.

Directions. Read this selection and look for the ideas. Discover the author’s predictions for the use of the unusual
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rate for two or three selections.

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your rate and comprehension score, as usual.

Cloud, Wallace. “Now They’ll Know You by Your ‘Smell Print’.” Reprinted by permission,
Popular Mechanics, February 1968, pp. 101-103, 196, 199. © The Hearst Corp.

The weird apparatus looked like a classic prop for
a science-fiction movie: A horizontal, heavy-walled
cylinder of Pyrex glass, big enough to hold a human
body. Tanks of compressed gas. Bubbling, fuming
flasks of supercold liquid nitrogen.

“Strip to your shorts,” said Dr. Boguslaw Kroto-
szynski. “Vapors from your clothing would add
extraneous data to the recording.”

I was going “into the tube” at the Illinois Institute
of Technology Research Institute in Chicago. Sus¬
pended animation? Not quite. I was about to have my
olfactronic signature recorded. That means the appa¬
ratus was going to collect a sample of the unique com¬
bination of odors given off by my body, then analyze
my “smell print.” A little like being sniffed for
recognition by a dog, but far more precise and
informative.

I lay down on the loader assembly — a narrow
stretcher of Teflon-coated steel tubing and Teflon
straps — and Dr. Krotoszynski pushed the loader
along on its rails. The “human test tube” swallowed
me up. I had to pull my shoulders together to fit in,
since the cylinder was only 18 inches in diameter.

The hiss of air flowing into the tube began, then I
heard the clank of quick-release bolts sealing me in.
Unintelligible voices from outside echoed in the tube.
Through the curved glass, Dr. Krotoszynski’s distorted
image waved at me and then went away.

I was in the tube for 45 minutes. It became a bit
stuffy. I squirmed to find a semi-comfortable posi¬
tion. There was an itch I couldn’t scratch.

Olfactronics, the new science of smells, is already
making a name for itself. Its best-known achievement
to date is the “people-sniffer,” developed by General
Electric, that’s being used successfully to detect
enemy troops hidden in the jungles of Vietnam. An
olfactronic bomb detector has been developed to
smell out explosives hidden -with murderous intent

aboard airliners. In the future, precise smell analysis
will help doctors to diagnose diseases. Sniffers will
be used in industrial process control and even by
electronics servicemen to identify malfunctioning
components.

Until only a few years ago, smells were beyond
scientific analysis. Odors consist of such small quan¬
tities of vapor in the air that instruments were not
sensitive enough to check them out. But this has all
changed. Apparatus such as that used at the IITRI
olfactronics laboratory is now capable of detecting
many substances 1/100th to 1/10,000th as concen¬
trated as those noticeable to the nose.

“Is the apparatus more sensitive than a dog’s
nose?” I asked Dr. Andrew Dravnieks, who is in
charge of the lab, after they let me out of the tube.

“We’re not really sure just how sensitive dogs are,”
he said. “Undoubtedly dogs can detect some odors we
can’t smell, but they have an added advantage in the
geometry of their noses. A dog can get his nose into
the boundary layer of air one to two millimeters
from the surface of the ground or an object. In that
relatively stagnant layer of air, odors are much less
dispersed than in moving air farther away.”

In the tube, very pure air had been passed over me.
The vapors given off by my skin and breath had been
collected in a small glass tube filled with Teflon
particles coated with a highly refined petroleum
grease. The grease didn’t retain water vapor or carbon
dioxide, but did trap all the organic substances from
the air.

The findings from this and other samples are being
used in a project sponsored by the Army Ballistics
Laboratory to analyze the characteristic odor signa¬
tures of various kinds of people. People give off about
100 different organic substances in vapor form. From
30 to 50 of these compounds emanate from any one
person at a given time. A pattern of specific subs-

tances, in characteristic amounts, makes up his par¬
ticular signature.

My signature would be written by the wiggling pen
of a chart recorder after the sample had been con¬
centrated. The sample tube, with helium gas flowing
through it, was being heated in an oven to drive off
the vapors. The helium passed into a smaller collect¬
ing tube cooled by liquid nitrogen, where the vapors
were frozen out and trapped again.

“It’s necessary to be very fussy in handling these
samples,” Dr. Dravnieks explained. “The total quan¬
tity of material is very small — about one micro¬
gram. For comparison, the weight of a fingerprint
is from five to 50 micrograms.”

The system is so sensitive it can detect some
substances in concentrations as low as l/10th of a
part per billion in the air. That’s sensitivity on the
order of detecting a puff of cigaret smoke in four or
five times the volume of the Empire State Building.

Dr. Krotoszynski, Dr. Dravnieks’s associate, was
now preparing to inject the sample into the instru¬
ment that performed the actual analysis, using the
technique called gas chromatography. In this device,
the vapors are once more trapped by a filtering
material, then revaporized by heat. The substances in
the mixture do not emerge simultaneously, but one
at a time, and are detected by the way they affect
the electrical conductivity of a hot gas. The signals
are automatically recorded, each substance registering
as a peak on the chart.

The recorder pen began to move, drawing peaks
and valleys on a chart that would be three feet long.

“That’s you,” said Dr. Dravnieks.

“I don’t recognize myself,” I said. “What can you
tell about me from this?”

“Well, we can’t tell very much about these signa¬
tures just by looking at them. But when we put the
data into a computer, it sorts out the similarities and
differences between your signature and others. On a
signature, we don’t even know what substances most
of the peaks represent. And right now we don’t
care. We’re looking for patterns — for the characteris¬
tics of different types of people.

Dr. Dravnieks showed me a map plotted from the
signatures of about 30 volunteers. There were three
distinct groups. One group, he said, represented white
male subjects, showing a definite similarity, and
another group stood for white female subjects. The
third group surprised me. Dr. Dravnieks said it repre¬
sented the signatures of a group of male students
from India studying at IIT.

Friend or enemy — which?

The “people sniffer” used in Vietnam recognizes
human beings by traces of ammonia produced in
sweat. But it cannot distinguish between American

troops and the Vietcong. If the olfactronic signatures
of Americans and at least one group of Asiatics are*
recognizably different, perhaps eventually it will be
possible to develop a sniffer that can distinguish
between friend and foe.

After enough olfactronic signatures have been
studied, significant peaks and the substances they
represent will be identified. Then a simplified de¬
tector for spotting those substances can be devel¬
oped, just as GE developed a simple ammonia
detector.

The same sort of thing had been done in the devel¬
opment of a bomb detector by IITRI for the Federal
Aviation Agency. Capable of monitoring the air from
the passenger and luggage compartments of an air¬
liner for a single substance given off by dynamite, it
is due to be field-tested by the FAA soon. IITRI tests
have already shown that the device can identify the
telltale odor on a person who has handled dynamite
even after he has washed his hands.

A compact box, the bomb detector can be installed
in service trucks that supply airconditioning to planes
during loading and unloading at the airport. Any
trace of the key substance from explosives brought
aboard a plane would set off an alarm.

Thus olfactronics is not limited to odors produced
by people. Dr. Dravnieks showed me two olfactronic
signatures taken from a transistor radio — one with
the radio off, the other with it switched on. There
was a noticeable difference between the charts.

A smelly resistor shows up

“You see that peak?” he said. “That’s an over¬
heating resistor. We deliberately introduced a mal¬
function into the circuit to see if we could detect it.
Complex electronic devices, such as computers, could
be continuously monitored to detect malfunctions
before they cause a breakdown. Mechanical systems,
such as engines, can also be monitored — for example,
to spot overheated bearings.”

But the brightest future for olfactronics may be in
medicine. Since human odors have their origins in
biological processes, changes in odor signatures can be
used to detect biological malfunctions. Physicians
already use their sense of smell in diagnosing diseases,
and about 40 different medical conditions are known
to have associated odors. But the usefulness of this
tool depends on the personal experience of the
doctor.

An example: Some years ago, doctors in a New
York hospital had difficulty diagnosing a patient’s
illness. A physician who had had experience in China
was called in. He walked into the room and immedi¬
ately identified the condition as a form of smallpox
common in the Far East but rare here. He recognized
it by an odor.

Eventually, it is expected that olfactronic instru¬
ments, more dependable and expert than a doctor’s
nose, will be among the most sensitive of medicine’s
diagnostic tools. They may be able to spot some dis¬
eases even before people know they are sick. And
they will be used for disease prevention — in schools,
say, where the unsuspected carriers of airborne dis¬
eases like tuberculosis will be detected by moni¬
toring the air.

At present, says Dr. Dravnieks, much more needs
to be learned about basic human odor signatures
before such medical uses become possible. “We know
that an individual’s signature can change, but we
don’t yet know much about what causes the change.”

One factor that has an effect on a person’s olfac¬
tronic signature is diet. If a person changes his eating
habits radically, this can change his signature over a
period of several days. It’s also possible that long¬
term differences in diet may be responsible for some

distinctions between the olfactronic signatures of
different groups of people. Women, for example,
often have different eating habits from men. And
the Indian students tested by Dr. Dravnieks tend to
be vegetarians. Deodorants, incidentally, don’t really
change a person’s olfactronic signature, although they
reduce the size of the peaks on the recording.

Olfactronics will become useful in criminology,
Dr. Dravnieks thinks. “Since a person leaves a little
bit of his odor wherever he goes, sampling the air at
the scene of a crime could tell you who has been
there. It can also work the other way around. A
place leaves odors on a person’s skin and clothes — so
taking his olfactronic signature can tell you where he
has been.”

Farfetched? Not at all, now that science has found
a way to study another of our sensory worlds — the
world of smells.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1. The smell detector is shaped like a

a. rectangle with glass and steel lining

b. vertical, six-sided steel shaft

c. horizontal, heav^-walled glass cylinder

d. horizontal cylinder with a circumference of almost six inches

2. How long was the author in the smell detector?

a. 18 minutes

b. 45 minutes

c. 60 minutes

d. 120 minutes

3. The new science of smell is called

a. olfactronics

b. scientronics

c. olfrasnuffs

d. nostranosis

4. Smells were beyond scientific analysis until recently because

a. no one had seriously considered smell analysis valuable

b. detecting instruments were not sensitive enough

c. odors consist of invisible vapor

d. the developmental costs are astronomical

5. About how many different organic substances do people give off in vapor form?

a. 10

b. 40

c. 65

d. 100

6. The smell analysis sytem is so sensitive it can detect

a. thirty times as many odors as one average dog

b. forest fires at a range of twenty miles upwind

c. an enemy platoon up to eight miles distant

d. a single puff of cigaret smoke in volume equal to five Empire State Buildings

7. The first priority task of the researchers was to discover

a. scent difference between different races

b. all the different scent vapors a human emits

c. characteristic patterns of different types of people

d. precise patterns for individuals

8. The “people sniffer” used in Vietnam recognized human beings by traces of

a. ammonia

b. metal

c. cigaret smoke

d. types of cloth

9. The author feels that the most promising use of olfactronics in the future may be to detect

a. drugs

b. explosives on airplanes

c. enemy forces during wartime

d. biological malfunctions

10. Olfactronics may become useful in criminology because

a. counterfeit money has a characteristic scent pattern

b. violent acts evoke distinctive odors

c. scent patterns can readily be filed along with fingerprints

d. both people and places have distinctive odors

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the 10 questions accurately. Record your scores.

Melton, Louise. “And Now, a Bit of Lib Service to that Oft-Msjudged Mortal, the Unemployed
Superperson.” Reprinted from Northliner , inflight magazine of North Central Airlines,

Fall, 1973, pp. 16-19.

Both the agony and the ecstasy of being a highly
educated and/or talented woman seeking a job is that
so many other highly educated and/or talented super¬
persons seem also to be out of work these days. Our
unemployment rolls are a triumph of American edu¬
cation.

Having been there, I feel qualified to offer the
novice — be she panting for a career the very day her
last moppet enters nursery school, or be she a laid-
off executive — some advice and insights she might
not otherwise have unless she likes to hang out with
aerospace engineers a lot.

The agony of being an unemployed superperson:
For every job opening for — say — a plasma physicist
with three years’ experience in data processing and
the ability to type 40 words per minute, there must
be 16 guys, two fugitive housewives with doctorates,
and a preternaturally clever retired Admiral queuing
up outside the advertiser’s personnel office clutching
resumes still warm from the Xerox machine.

The sense of camaraderie that develops between
the same old superpeople applying for the same few
jobs is about the only ecstasy I can think of, and I
mention it only in the interest of preserving the ten¬
uous illusion of objectivity.

It’s nice as you sink wearily into a succession of
identical yellow vinyl chairs hugging your ego to your
bosom, to recognize the red grenadier moustache you
were sure got the last job you applied for. It’s reas¬
suring to hear the grating nasal accomplishments of a
rival issuing out of the personnel director’s cubicle,
and to know that your own cooly modulated “good
afternoon” will get you at least a lunch date with the
systems group leader in charge of non-defense wea¬

pons research.

If you’re clever, and modestly unscrupulous, you
can use these fleeting encounters with the competi¬
tion to strike up friendly little information-gathering
conversations. It’s perfectly acceptable to say, “Hi,
I’m Ms. X. Are you here for an interview, too?”
Never start with anything so bald and squinty-eyed
as, “Don’t try to deny it — I know you’re here for
the senior refractor analyst’s iob!”

If you should happen to make such a remark to a
rival, or — God forbid — to the systems group leader
himself, you might as well fling yourself off the
nearest parapet and have done with it.

But if you’re insensitive enough to put up with
slithery interviewers in tight fraternity rings ques¬
tioning your summa cum credentials and calling you
by your first name, stick in there.

Don’t even let it worry you when your own speci¬
fic employment history doesn’t match up with what
the apple-cheeked sisters in personnel listed in the
classifieds. The gorgeous thing about being a super¬
person is your fine mind, your thirst for knowledge,
your willingness to learn new skills and to explore,
to expand your professional horizons — to lie on
your resume.

Of course it isn’t a good idea to apply for an Avon
lady job if you never wear makeup, or to shoot for
vice-president in charge of public relations if your
last job was as an IRS investigator. But do make the
most of your resume.

Say, for example, you’re applying for assistant
advertising director. Search your past — even that dim
traumatic memory known as adolescence. If you
waited on tables summers at the beach and got

suckered into typing up the stencils for the daily
mimeographed menus, you were a junior copywriter
for Le Restaurant du Plage. If you’re lusting after a
marketing manager’s slot with Sic Transit Electronics,
Inc., and you promised to bust Mary Jane Pickett in
the mouth if she didn’t get out and hustle those Girl
Scout cookies, you weren’t just the kid who got
stuck with the whole consignment — you were local
distribution director for a nationally organized fund¬
raising campaign.

Of course it doesn’t make any sense. It doesn’t
have to, as long as all the proper buzz words are
there to catch the personnel man’s eye. It’s important
words like copywriter and distribution director that
work for you.

Good words to throw in depend on the particular
profession you are aiming for. Your best bet is to
pick up a dull — the duller the better — industry
journal and find which words annoy you most by
reason of their over-frequent appearance. Computer
freaks, for example, love initials like M.I.S. [Manage¬
ment Information Systems], and M.F.T. [Multi-pro¬
gramming Fixed Tasking]. School superintendents,
when hiring teachers, like to talk about tracks , pupil
readiness , motivational studies , and relevance. They
don’t like to talk about money.

The words extensive experience for some unknown
reason will almost automatically get you to the
second interview in any profession even if you write
“extensive experience experiencing extensives.” It’s
those first two words the personnel man scritches
under with a red felt-tipped pen.

Now, a very important point for the job hunting
superperson to remember: don’t waste your big guns
on the first interview. Sure, you need to leave a good
enough impression to get them to call you back and
talk with someone Real, but it’s better to fire a few
short bursts of Competent and Interesting and save
the big blam of Wonderful for someone who can
understand enough about what it is you do, to
appreciate how well you do it.

There’s a story, probably apocryphal, about an
architect/city planner who murdered a personnel
interviewer with an exactly detailed scale model of
the cities of Brussels, Amsterdam and Copenhagen as
they would look if they had completely new solar-
powered rapid transit systems, 23% more public
recreational area, and partridges in all their pear
trees. The story goes that the personnel man, upon
being shown this architectural wonder, glanced at it,
then droned, “And after M.I.T., you went to Cal
Tech, is that right?”

One thing to remember about personnel people is
they are very literal-minded. They want all the little
blanks in their forms filled out completely even
though they have a sadistic tendency to give you a

block 14-inch deep by 1-inch long for your entire edu¬
cational record starting with Miss Randolph’s first
grade right down to post-doctoral research.

And don’t forget the dates.

I can’t generalize for all superpersons, but it seems
to me there is something about being multi-talented
and wonderful that makes it impossible to get acade¬
mic years straight as opposed to fiscal years and/or
calendar years, Alexandrian, Gregorian or whatnot.
For example, did you attend Wellesley between 9/58
and 6/62 or, more mysteriously, between 9/58 and
1/59 and 9/59 to 6/62? How do you count the
semester you were out with mono you caught from
your roommate, the one everyone called Camille
because of her endearing little cough?

Dates can screw up your credibility on work
experience, too. You say, based on your old tax
records, that you were a quality control engineer for
Automation Associates from 4/63 to 10/67, but the
video display terminal in their personnel office reads
out 4/63 to 10/60 and your former boss can recall
only that you came to work right before sales started
falling off, so it must have been sometime in the
spring of whatever year you say it was. And God
knows what you put on your resume. Whatever it
was, it doesn’t match the dates you scrawled on your
application blank with the personnel receptionist’s
cracked and chewed Bic.

Another part of the employment application to be
wary of is an innocuous space where you’re supposed
to list your “interests and hobbies.” It’s always the
largest space. They do it deliberately to make you
feel guilty when you leave it mostly blank. You’re on
firm ground when you list your academic and profes¬
sional honors, but even Eleanor Roosevelt would
have been cowed by “interests and hobbies.”

Somehow the word reading looks time-wasting. It
could mean anything from Newtonian physics to
Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase. Painting is
risky because it smacks of suburban evening classes
for the dilettante haus frau. Sports activities are all
right, but you are in some danger of being snagged
into departmental volleyball intermurals. Golf is nice.
It sounds solid and middle class. Honest answers like
sloth , puttering , and thinking of excuses not to
attend PTA meetings are going to get you tossed into
the flush letter pile.

Try for something esoteric and impressive — and
obscure — so they can’t ask specific questions. I
mean, who’s really going to shake your hand, offer
you a cup of brackish office coffee, and say, “Nice
to see you. I understand you are interested in the
genetic trans-mutational processes of an extinct
species of Cavia cobaya . ”? If you’re trying to get a
job with a guinea pig breeder, of course, that would
be a bad hobby to fake. But it just might work if

you’re aching to be a tech writer for the Black Strap
Molasses and Birdseed Company.

You’ll just have to make your own choice. If you
really do dig gardening, you might as well own up to
it. Who knows? Maybe the chairman of the board
spends more time with his dahlias than with his
directors.

Most of this advice, is, admittedly, available in
greater and more exquisite detail from professionals
in the field of matching Terrific People with Terrific
Jobs. At least, that’s what the headhunters and execu¬
tive career counselors would have us believe.

Everyone who has ever been an unemployed pro¬
fessional has his own opinion of headhunters — men
who call you on the phone during dinner and offer,
for a fee sometimes paid by the prospective employer,
to do the tedious work of polishing your resume and
sending it out where it will do the most good. The
headhunters claim to have private information about
positions opening up that do not appear in want ads,
and in a booming economy this is certainly often true.
Companies get hungry for good people and they’re
willing to pay headhunters hefty bounties for them.
But in a sluggish, recession-in-all-but-name economy,
a headhunter can be a definite detriment. Why should
J. Paul Bull and Sons pay some clown who turned to
headhunting because he is himself an out-of-work
chemist to find men and women who are already
howling at the personnel office door?

Headhunters also have a less-than-admirable affec¬
tion for setting up as many far distant interviews as
possible for jobs only vaguely related to your back¬
ground and desires. If you are a corporation lawyer
specializing in real estate and land litigation, your
headhunter will schedule you to audition as legal
advisor to a muffin manufacturer in Richmond,
Virginia at 9 a.m. on Monday and have you pretend¬
ing you know something about stock transactions for
an unimpressed broker in New York early that
afternoon.

Executive career counselors have more class than
to send you chasing every wild goose in the job
market, however. As a matter of fact, they don’t
guarantee to get you a job at all. [Grubbing after
mere employment is, after all, crass merchantile
behavior and as keepers of the keys to the new tech¬
nologic aristocracy, these slick silk-tied devils are
above such demeaning activity.]

What they are not above, however, is ripping you
off for a couple thousand while they “counsel” you
to type all correspondence and ask for less money
than you are really willing to settle for. Well — per¬
haps they do offer more than that, but as a woman
you’ll be spared the “family” treatment men get.
If a male job-hunter walks into their offices, they’ll
offer to counsel his wife, too, in the art of being a
good little executive helpmeet. One outfit even
prepares a little-pink-bordered pamphlet for wives

called “How-Helped Her Man MAKE It!”

with the appropriate name written into the blank
by a secretary who almost learned how to use an
italic nib.

They’ll also give you a battery of tests from aptitu-
dinal to psychological, most of which were originally
designed to weed out dangerous paranoids from the
freshman class of Mary Baldwin College. The results
will show that you’re a better woman for having
undergone their six-week charm school for moguls
and you’ll get a hearty masculine handshake as you
stumble off to resume calling old friends and reading
classifieds.

The main thing for an unemployed superperson to
do is to stay loose emotionally. It’s a pretty rough
jolt for anyone to be out of work — male or female.
But when you’ve spent the better part of your life
in schools that promised you’d be happily employed
ever after so long as you had that expensive degree,
it is even more difficult. So keep yourself busy. Read
books like How To Eat Well On Practically Nothing
and Welfare for the $40,000-a-Year-Girl. Learn a
reliable trade like carpentry, piano tuning, or harness
making. And don’t start looking around for a man —
they’re unemployed, too, a lot of them.

Above all, avoid making depressing statements like
“Harry Freebish has a job and Harry Freebish is an
idiot!” That attitude can only be counterproductive
especially since Harry Freebish is probably the person¬
nel director of the only company in your area that’s
hiring.

And if you hear of anything for an unemployed
superperson with a Master’s who can write, type 30
wpm, do advanced calculus and tapdance, please
write me in care of this magazine.

A freelancer living in Framingham , Mass., Super¬
person Louise Melton teaches creative resume writing
when she's not out looking for work.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1. The tone of the article is

a. bitter

b. radical

c. cynically humorous

d. pedantic

2. The author feels the American educational system contributes to unemployment because

a. going to school does not prepare one for a job

b. the system creates superpersons who are too egotistical to work

c. colleges want students to remain students forever

d. years of education sometimes leave superpersons helpless in the job market

3. The author feels that all one needs to do to match up the demands advertised in the
classifieds is to

a. lie on his/her resume

b. emphasize all the superperson attributes

c. make other applicants appear unworthy by comparison

d. express a willingness to learn

4. If you were ever suckered into typing the daily menu while you were employed as a
waitress, you should tell your interviewer that you

a. have extensive typing experience

b. were a junior copywriter for a swanky restaurant

c. will only do what you are hired to do

d. have demonstrated extreme versatility under stress

5. The buzz words that catch the personnel manager’s eye are

a. technical, intellectual words scattered throughout the resume

b. words like “golf” or “volleyball” under the hobby section

c. words like “copywriter” or “distribution director”

d. fantastic figure measurements, like 39-23-36

6. What are the first two words the personnel manager scratches under with his red
felt-tipped pen?

a. extensive experience

b. name of the college you attended, e.g. Weybelow Normal

c. your last employer’s name, e.g. I. Magnin

d. convicted felon

7. The author observes that the superperson’s record from first grade through post-doctoral
research must be summarized

a. in the space it takes to name Grover Cleveland Memorial Kindergarten in petite print

b. in mind-boggling detail on multiple sheets of unlined paper

c. in order to make the applicant feel undereducated no matter what

d. to expose any tendency to transfer schools or to move across state lines

8. The author feels the “interests and hobbies” blank on the resume is the largest because

a. the employer takes great interest in employees’ leisure activities

b. hobbies reveal a great deal about a person’s character

c. it is a deliberate attempt to make the applicant feel guilty

d. the company athletic director is always on the lookout for prospects

9. The author advises the unemployed superwoman to

a. look around for a man

b. remind herself that Harry Freebish is an idiot but he has a job

c. stay loose emotionally

d. never lose hope

10. Louise Melton, the author,

a. leaps over buildings in single bounds

b. taught remedial calculus before the program was phased out at Harry Truman
Technical College

c. is such a superperson that she has never been employed

d. teaches creative resume writing when not looking for work

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Discussion. Practice your skimming techniques! Remember, skimming is different from scanning, because you are
not looking for a specific fact. You’re trying to find more general information that will give you the “gist” of the selection
you’re reading. To skim, identify the key words and phrases. The following exercises will help you learn this skill.

1. When you skim, first note the title of a selection (or, if none, briefly glance over the paragraphs) to get a notion of the
topic. Then, begin to pick out the key, or prominent, words. Those words are the ones that say the most to you about
the topic.

As you identify the key words, you learn more about the content of the selection. For example, paragraph a is about
cardiac compression. Skim this paragraph by identifying the words that say the most to you about this topic. For prac¬
tice, underline the key words.

The primary purpose of cardiac compression is to
rapidly restore the flow of oxygenated blood through the
arteries to the brain. The heart lies between the sternum
(breast bone) and the spinal column. When the lower part
of the sternum is pressed down toward the spinal column,
the heart is compressed and blood is forced from both the
right and left ventricles. The valves in the heart prevent
the blood from being forced backward; so it is pushed out
into the arteries.

Now compare your key words with our list below. Keep in mind that choosing key words is personal, because in¬
dividuals’ backgrounds and experiences differ. Generally, however, you should have underlined more than a few
words, but certainly not every other word!

purpose cardiac compression restore blood brain heart
sternum spinal column sternum pressed down spinal
column heart blood is forced ventricles valves prevent
forced backward arteries

2. In paragraph b we underlined some key words for you. Skim it by noting the words and their relation to the topic,
which is “Skimming.” The words should give you more information about skimming. Reskim paragraph b later to
check your information.

Pauk, Walter. ‘The Art of Skimming,” Reading
Improvement, II (Winter 1965), pp. 29-31. Cited by
Cassel, Russell N. (Ed. & Pub.) Educational Digest ,

1965, pp. 30, 46.

The most productive and versatile of reading skills is
skimming. It is highly productive as a tool for searching
the pages of a book for an individual or for a general item.

Some people object that “skimming is reading at a
superficial level ,” and maintain that “anything worth
reading is worth reading well .” But skimming is not a
substitute for reading; skimming is usually a prelude to
reading. Through skimming, the student can eliminate
books or portions of books not worth reading, thus saving
time so that he can read thoroughly those books or
portions of books adjudged worthwhile.

Now skim paragraph c the same way you did paragraph b. It is about a stomach ulcer.

A stomach ulcer is usually caused by too much tension .
Undergoing continual stress causes the body to secrete
an excessive amount of dig estive fluids . These include
h ydrochloric acid and pepsin which are both very
corrosive. They may wear away at one spot of the
protective linin g. Once they seep through, the dama ge
may be irreparable (at least without surgery). To prevent
such ulcers, hypertensive people should learn how to
relax regularly. But, if they do experience the tell-tale
lower stomach pains, a medical check-up is warranted. A
neglected ulcer can lead to serious complications , and
malignancy is always a possibility.

3. Practice makes perfect! Skim paragraphs d - g by first noting the title, and then underlining the key words and/or short
phrases. Remember, you choose key words according to their relation to the topic and not according to their position,
length, or number within a sentence or paragraph. Check your key words with ours in the Answer Key. While not
every word (or phrase) has to match, you may determine whether you are choosing too many words, for example,
reading instead of skimming and picking up too many details. Or choosing too few words, that is, not enough to deter¬
mine what the paragraph is about.

Dalrymple, Byron W. “Bass Fishing.” Reprinted from
Sports Afield Magazine , July 1969 Issue. © 1969

by The Hearst Corp.

We were drifting off a small rocky island in Ele¬
phant Butte Lake, New Mexico, casting deep-running
plugs toward the steeply slanted shoreline. I was
using a “countdown” lure. You cast it and count off
seconds, each second equaling a foot of depth to
which the lure has sunk. It was difficult to know just
where to stop, since I was not familiar with the lake’s
bottom. Fortunately, a bass gave me a clue.

As the lure settled, presumably wobbling a bit as
it sank, the line suddenly tightened. Reflexively, I
hit back. I was fast to a bass that freewheeled away in
grand style, then sawed line against the surface and
came up to burst forth in a most satisfying display.
I would like to tell how an eight-pounder really took
me ’round and ’round. But, it was not that large. I
guessed it at three and was happy. In my estimation
bass about this size are the most active fighters, and
the best for filleting.

[stop I

“Down and Squawking.” FA A Aviation News.

March, 1973.

The plane which is never found produces its own
special kind of tragedy. Between 1964 and 1971 there
was a total of 940 missing planes in the United States,
and of that number 117 have never been found. The
shock of a missing plane is enormous for the pilot’s
family: the hours of waiting, then the days, the un¬
certainty, and as the weeks pass the waning hope of
recovery. And finally there is the anguish of never
really knowing what happened.

In addition to these emotional factors, there are
also important financial considerations at stake.
Often, estates cannot be settled for missing people
until seven years have elapsed and a presumption of
death established. Many of the estates of the people
involved in those 117 missing planes have not yet
been settled, causing problems with insurance and
family finances. Hence the need to find missing air¬
craft, whether or not there are survivors.

Wulff, Lee. “The Wonderful Brookies of Minipi.”

Reprinted from Sports Afield Magazine, July 1969
Issue © 1969 by The Hearst Corp.

Back in the summers of the mid-fifties, when I was
flying the only light plane in eastern Labrador, I used
to look down on unbroken wilderness for mile after
mile. The Indians traveled that wild land occasionally
as part of their normal life pattern, and a few pros¬
pectors and trappers in search of a fabulous strike of
minerals or furs lost themselves in its vastness. Now
and then a woodsman traveled into a lowland river
basin to evaluate the timber potential, and a few mili¬
tary and bush pilots flew over the area. Some of the
bush pilots who loved to fish found time to drop
from the skies to the uncharted lakes for a brief
holiday. But for me exploring these unknown waters
was a major project — and a labor of love.

Greenberg, A1 (Ed.) “Editorial Musings.” Reprinted
with permission of Skiing Magazine, © 1974.

An innate trait of the American character seems to
be the assumption that all it takes to drive a car is to
sit behind the wheel, turn the key, press a button,
learn where some of the switches are — and presto,
you’re off.

For every driver who has some idea of the workings
of his machine, there must be 100 — maybe 1,000 —
who have no idea of what’s under that hood and who
leave all the worry about maintenance to the garage
mechanic. The automobile industry seems to want it
that way. The more automatic it is, the better it sells.

True, driver education courses are spreading, which
is a hopeful sign. They won’t ever put repair me¬
chanics out of business, but by teaching a few of the
basics about what makes a car run, such courses
should result in longer life for both car and driver.

4. To be sure you are on the right track in picking out key words, skim paragraphs h - k and underline the important
words and phrases. After you underline the paragraph, write down, in a word or two, what the paragraph is about.
Compare your answers with ours, as you did for paragraphs d -g. Remember, don’t slip into an old habit, begin reading
instead of skimming, and end up underlining every other word!

Reiger, George. “Never Underestimate the Power of a
Pigeon,” International Wildlife , September/October,

1973, p. 29.

During the first and second world wars, pigeons
carried messages in all theaters of action, but particu¬
larly in Europe. Birds received such decorations as the
Distinguished Service Cross and the Croix de Guerre
for their gallantry, and one bird, Cher Ami, saved
America’s “Lost Battalion.” Badly wounded, the
pigeon flew 25 miles in 25 minutes.

During World War II, Allied forces dropped their
better-trained pigeons with agents, to be used as a
more secure and nearly as reliable means of commu¬
nication as the clandestine radio. The first such
pigeon returned from its mission in 1940. She (a dark
checkered hen named Kenley Lass) descended with
an agent at night, traveled nine miles under the
agent’s sweater, remained eleven days in concealment,
and was finally released the twelfth morning. She was
back in her loft by 1500 hours that afternoon with
vital information regarding the disposition of enemy
troops. For this service, she was decorated with the
Dickin Medal, the pigeon’s equivalent of the Victoria
Cross!

Idea:

Look at everyone else, talking, laughing, shuffling
books around, casually sharpening their pencils. Why
are you the only one nervous about taking a test?

The truth is, you aren’t the only one. Take a care¬
ful look around the room. See that cute little
cheerleader, always so poised and self-confident; why
she’s even giggling! There’s one sure sign of nervous¬
ness; many people just can’t help letting out that
impulsive little giggle when they are most frightened.
You can hear loud-pitched voices from classmates on
the other side of the room. Those boisterous students
are nervous too; they’re trying to shout above the
pounding of their own hearts. And even those people
quietly fingering their pencils are nervous. You know
how uncomfortable you feel when you have nothing
to do with your hands — that is often the reason why
many people smoke, particularly when they are
nervous or self-conscious. Even your friends who are
resharpening their already-sharpened pencils are mere¬
ly trying to find something to occupy them, post¬
poning the inevitable test.

“A Little Rub Means a Lot.” International Wildlife ,
September/October, 1973, p. 2.

J-

Jaguars, like other wild cats, reinforce their rela¬
tionships to each other through friendly tactile ges¬
tures. Head rubbing and social licking, for example,
strengthen the bonds between individuals.

A close relationship between jaguar mothers and
cubs, often displayed by head rubbing, continues for
one or two years after birth. At that time the cubs,
usually one to four to a litter, are able to fend for
themselves.

Young jaguars’ maternal dependence is well known
by the Jivaro Indians of northern Peru who believe
that eminent chiefs and shamans (priests who use
magic) can be transformed into young jaguars imme¬
diately after death. The Jivaros, taking over the role
of the jaguar mother, bring food to the body of a
dead chief for two years, believing he will be able to
live independently thereafter as a mature jaguar.

Idea:

Schultz, Harry. What the Prudent Investor Should
Know A bout Switzerland and Other Foreign Money
Havens. New Rochelle, New York: Arlington House,

1970.

By 1862 there were a little under 2000 banks, each
issuing currency which circulated at a discount and
which reflected confidence in the individual bank. Up
to this point there was no national currency, so the
question of devaluation, etc. did not exist. You put
your savings with the bank of your choice and unless
you chose very well, you either lost everything when
the bank closed and went out of business, or you lost
a portion when their bills sold at a discount. In those
days the best way to keep the value of your assets
was gold coins in your own possession . . . provided
of course you could keep from being robbed.

Idea:

5. Now mentally pick out the key words in paragraphs l - u. Skim each paragraph quickly and write down the main idea of
it. Check your answers in the Answer Key.

Jarman, Cathy. “Atlas of Animal Migration,” Inter¬
national Wildlife. New York: The John Day Co., Inc.

September /October, 1973, p. 6.

Recently, research has thrown some light on how
animals navigate. Birds, fishes, many insects and crus¬
taceans can find their direction by taking a bearing on
the sun. This is known as a “sun compass sense.”

Migrating animals usually continue to travel in the
same direction when using the sun to orient them¬
selves. As the earth rotates, the sun moves from east
to west and the animals have to compensate for this
movement. To do this they use an internal “compass,”
which, by means of its “sun compass sense,” adjusts
itself to the changing angle of the sun’s rays. Under
normal daylight conditions, the “compass” runs on
local time. Using artificial sunlight, biologists have
carried out experiments on birds in which the bird’s
internal “compass” is upset. When the bird is released,
it flies off at a predictable “wrong” angle.

Many animals migrate at night. They include a
large number of birds, bats, fish and moths. It is now
known that some night migrants definitely use the
moon and stars to navigate by a method known as
“light compass sense.” Birds must have a very pre¬
cise internal “compass” as they have to compensate
for the daily movements of the celestial bodies and
for seasonal changes as well.

Idea: _

“Twins sniwT,” Max J. Friedman in
Parents , Nov. 1980, pp. 76-81

. . . twins have ever been something of an oddity — and it
seems they will remain so for many years to come. And it
is this very unusualness that holds a certain fascination
for us all, which, perhaps, explains why twins have
always played important roles in mythology and culture.
For example, the biblical Jacob and Esau were fraternal
twins, and perhaps the first to highlight the competitive
nature of twinship (so competitive, in fact, that Jacob
stole Esau’s birthright). In Greek mythology Apollo, the
sun god, and Artemis, the moon goddess, were twins; and
the two key stars in the twin constellation, Gemini, are
named after Helen of Troy’s twin brothers, Castor and
Pollux. So in some cultures the twin relationship was
catapulted to literally astronomical heights . . .

Madson, John. The Mallard. East Alton, Illinois:

Winchester Press, 1960.

The mallard’s shrewd adaptiveness is most apparent
whenever he and the hunter match wits.

Duck clubs near Havana, Illinois, used to end their
shooting at noon during the days when baiting was
lawful. With all shooting ended at 12 o’clock, the
mallards soon began returning to the banquet table
a half-hour later. So the club operators extended
shooting until 1 p.m. The mallards quickly tumbled
to this change and stayed away from the baited areas
until 1:30. When shooting was extended to 2 o’clock,
the mallards didn’t return until nearly 3 o’clock. And
so it went — the shooting hours being set later and the
mallards adjusting their own schedule accordingly.
By the end of the season, shooting extended to dark
and the ducks were feeding at night; as fast as man
adapted himself to the situation, the mallards fol¬
lowed suit.

Smart as they were before, mallards graduate from
college once they’ve been stung by a few shot pellets.
Banded mallards that are known to have been wound¬
ed show a much lower band recovery than un¬
wounded birds, indicating a learned wariness. Many
other game birds also grow wary when the gun pres¬
sure is turned on. But unlike most of these, mallards
may be inflexibly wild while being heavily hunted or
may live with man in perfect harmony and grow fat
and tame on barnyard ponds.

Yet, even then there are exceptions to mallard
rules. Pen-reared mallards have fitted in perfectly
on shooting preserves where they are utterly domestic
in the feeding pens but still able to flash over duck
blinds at 60 miles per hour, as fast and tricky as any
of their wild brethren, and just as capable of making
great migration flights if they revert to the wild.

Idea: _

Idea:

Several fishermen were recently astounded when they
saw a seal lion, surrounded by killer whales, cry out for
help and be saved by dolphins. The sailors witnessed the
incident from their fishing vessel off the coast of
Kamchatka in the Soviet Union Far East.

The sea lion was encircled by the killer whales, which
were closing in, when it roared — sending out a distress
call. Within minutes, the dolphins appeared and the
whales turned away. But it was only a tactical maneuver
and a mile away, the whales suddenly changed direction
and bore down on the sea lion again. The dolphins rushed
to the sea lion's aid again, leaped over the whales and
formed a ring around the sea lion.

“The predators had to leave the battlefield
ingloriously,” the sailors said. “The sea lion was saved."

Idea: _

St. George, George. “Out of Bounds...,” International
Wildlife , September/October, 1973, p. 34.

Captain-Commander Vitus Bering visited these
islands [the Commanders] 232 years ago. A Dane in
Peter the Great’s service, he was the man who proved
that Asia and America were two separate continents
divided by the strait which now bears his name. As
the first European on the whole chain of bleak islands
stretching from Russia to Alaska, he named them
after the members of his crew who perished during
the voyage.

On November 5, 1741, a storm tossed Bering’s
battered and rudderless frigate ashore here, on what
his crew thought was the eastern shore of Kamchatka.
In their futile search for shelter, the crew dug a hole
in the ground for Bering, ill with scurvy, and par¬
tially covered him with earth for warmth. In another
month this temporary shelter became a grave; the

Commander died of scurvy and fever.

Up to the last day, Bering kept a diary. He recorded
that even though he let his crew think they were in
Kamchatka and that their nightmarish ordeal was over,
he knew better. He knew that few men had ever
been to this place before because the many animals
and birds had no fear of men. Arctic foxes, called
“Vanikas” (or “Little Ivans”) by Bering’s crew, fol¬
lowed the men like pet dogs.

Today, Vanikas no longer follow men around the
islands, but neither do they have much fear of the
people they see — a self-sustaining community of
nature lovers dedicated to conservation, preservation
and study of wildlife on and around the islands. The
population of 1,200 is composed largely of biologists,
zoologists, game wardens and their families, plus
enough doctors, teachers, and other workers needed
to sustain a community.

Idea: _

Roessler, Carl. “The Baroque Innocence of the Coral
Sea ” International Wildlife , September/October,

1973, pp. 40, 42.

Then at the very limit of visibility loomed the
great coral towers we had come so far to see. From
the surface they had been merely arcs of bright green
in a blue sea. Now, rising 100 to 130 feet from the
floor of the open ocean, they took our breath away.

As we drew nearer we could see that these “bom-
mies” (from the Australian aborigine word bombora —
a coral structure that doesn’t break the surface)
supported a rich community of life. Languid colonies
of crinoids (feather starfish) in brilliant colors spread
their delicate arms in the food-bearing ocean currents.
Baroque spires of coral decorated the mountainous
towers so lavishly they seemed to tumble over each
other in a frantic reach for the sun.

Meanwhile, all around the towers were clouds of
fish of every description: tiny damselfish, angelfish
and butterfly fish in blazing hues hovered near the
protective crevices of the great sunken metropolis,
while in the deep blue water some distance away the
foxes and wolves of the sea, amberjack and barracuda,
hovered or patrolled patiently.

Idea: _

Madson, John. The Ring-Necked Pheasant. East
Alton, Illinois: Winchester Press, © 1962.

Prairie chickens have never been seen to win a
fight with pheasants around winter feeding stations.
One cock pheasant was seen chasing a cock prairie
chicken during late May when the hens of both
species were probably nesting. The prairie chicken
would fly a short distance, light, and be flushed again
by the ringneck. This went on for half a mile.

Pheasants aren’t usually very edgy in winter,
however, and sharp-tailed grouse have been seen
chasing ringnecks away from feeding stations. But
this has been reported only in winter, and at feeding
stations, and probably occurs little at other times
and places.

Some of this touchiness on the pheasant’s part
could be caused by a swerving sex drive. There is a
case of a cock pheasant invading a booming ground
and driving away three male prairie chickens at a
time when some hen prairie chickens were in the
immediate area. Hybridization may result from such
incidents; there has been a hybrid reported between a
ringneck and a blue grouse.

Very aggressive — or rejected — ringneck cocks may
even invade barnyards and successfully battle domes¬
tic roosters and acquire their hens. It’s a freak situa¬
tion, but it has occurred. The offspring is called a
“pero.” This can give a farmer some grief, but it’s
usually funnier than it is serious. Anyway, it’s nothing
that a farmer can’t solve in the most direct way by
just reaching behind the kitchen door for “OP Fox-
Fogger” and spraying his barnyard with chilled 6’s.

Crosses have also been made between pheasants
and turkeys. All such hybrid chicks are sterile. The
feathering of their heads and necks is typical of the
pheasant, and such crosses are usually intermediate
in size between the parent birds.

The rugged, brassy old ringneck is often accused
of bullying smaller game birds, and many hunters
believe that a pheasant will go out of his way to
battle cock quail. But rooster pheasants aren’t res¬
ponsible for low quail populations. Habitat is the
real reason. Pheasant and quail ranges do overlap, but
that common range is usually marginal country for
either species. Bobwhites aren’t driven out of phea¬
sant range by ornery ringnecks, but by ornery winters.

Idea: _

“The Sawtooth Range: A solitude worth saving,”

Friends , August, 1969.

Living in the shadow of the Grand Tetons can give
a mountain range an inferiority complex. That’s
what’s happened to the unappreciated Sawtooth
Range in Idaho. Some 200 miles west and at a lower
elevation than the overwhelming Tetons, the Sawtooth
area contains some of the most breathtaking views in
the west, 42 peaks over 10,000 feet, 180 lakes,
dozens of campgrounds, unequalled fishing, comfort¬
able lodges, about 200,000 acres of pristine wilder¬
ness.

Motel owners tried to heal the Sawtooth ego by
seeking National Park status, hoping the instant fame
would bring business and preservation. They failed,
and the Sawtooths appeared to face a future of sub¬
division houses and billboards overlaid with neon lace.
But now, a new treatment has been found. It inti¬
mates a complete and lasting cure. The Sawtooths’
inner conflicts aren’t hard to diagnose. They’re the
same agonies that wrack a small town when an overly
fragrant industry offers to build a factory upwind.
How each resident feels depends largely on how his
personal nose will fare.

In Idaho there are folks who’d like to see the Saw¬
tooths used to attract some of the lucrative tourist
trade passing by on its way to Grand Teton and
Yellowstone National Parks. Some want to keep the
area strictly to themselves. Others want to reject any
government interference. And still others want to
subdivide the area for summer homesites of an un¬
believable beauty.

The treatment proposed to end the conflicts is
designation as a National Recreation Area. This is a
relatively recent land use concept (it’k only six years
old) and probably will see House action later this
year. Essentially, the plan calls for lumping the
existing 200,000-acre Sawtooth primitive area with
some 117,000 acres of forest and range between the
valley lands and the primitive area, plus about 23,000
acres now in private ownership, 10,000 acres of public
domain, and 1,600 acres of state-owned land< The
consolidation would be a 351,000-acre recreation
area under management of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture Forest Service.

Idea: ___

Noorbergen, Rene. “Holland Controls Air Pollution
by Computer,” International Wildlife , September/

October, 1973, p. 17.

In the industrial area near Rotterdam, Holland, the
Dutch are using a revolutionary approach to fight air
pollution. They use a computer to measure, predict
and evaluate a potential air pollution problem hours
before it may become noticeable.

“Our measuring system,” G. Schilder, an official,
told International Wildlife , “is based on testing the
sulfur dioxide content in the air through 31 sampling
stations. At any wind direction, eight of them are
downwind from the pollution sources. These stations
or suction poles draw in an air sample once every
minute and break down the chemical composition
of the polluted air in an analyzer. These instruments
in turn transform their readings into an electrical sig¬
nal which is then relayed to our central control panel
via the regular telephone lines.

“On our panel — a wall-sized map of the entire
area — each suction pole is represented by a light
which flashes on when the pollution in its area has
reached an abnormally high level. At the same time,
the signal is fed into our computer where the reading
is compared to that of the other poles. That’s where
the computer really takes over. Searching its memory
banks for similar conditions in days past, and by
taking wind strength, wind direction and current
atmospheric conditions into consideration, it may,
based on its total findings, predict a pollution pro¬
blem within six or eight hours.

“We follow up by checking the weather forecast
for the immediate vicinity and dispatch a number of
our inspectors to the area with the highest pollution
density. We warn the industrial complexes of the
pending problem. This phase calls for voluntary
action, but our advice is usually followed.”

The Netherlands government has since set up a
nationwide Pollution Warning System consisting of
about 150 widely distributed stations, all hooked
into one computer.

Scott, Jack Denton. “No Wonder the Crocodile is
Crying ” International Wildlife , September/October,

1973, p. 14.

Although the crocodile has changed little from its
prehistoric counterpart, it is a highly developed
modern reptile. If it loses a tooth, another usually
grows in place. It is built like a submarine, and can
submerge its body completely, yet the eyes, nostrils
and ears are set so high in the head that it can see,
breathe and hear with them just barely visible. When
it dives, membranes automatically close over the
eyes to protect them, and skin valves shut over the
nostrils.

Swift in water, surprisingly agile on land

The body is covered with tough plates, not joined
to the skeleton or fused together; this lack of fusion
enables the crocodile to move with unexpected agility
on land. Some species are almost as swift as a shark in
water; the reptile has a four-chambered heart, socket¬
ed teeth, and its mouth and tail are among the strong¬
est in nature. Its eyes contain a large amount of
rhodopsin, or “visual purple,” a pigment that absorbs
light and gives excellent vision in areas of low illumi¬
nation — underwater, day or night. Some crocodiles
are 20 feet long, yet they can survive on as little as a
pound of food a day for short periods.

Idea: _

Proceed to the Flexible reading and read the directions.

Idea:

Making Flexibility Pay

FLEXIBLE READING

Discussion. Would you like to beat the high cost of vacationing in style? And still have all the comforts of home? This
next article, “Swap Your Home for Your Next Vacation,” tells how you can do it.

This article is a good example of one in which the general ideas, not the details, are important. As a reader, all you need
to know is whether or not the whole idea of house swapping makes sense. And appeals to you. You can find out with an ex¬
tremely rapid reading of the article.

So try reading it very quickly to get the general ideas only. And apply the skimming techniques you’ve been practicing.
Here’s a chance to put them to work for you.

Directions. Press the joystick button when you begin reading this article and press it again when you finish. There are
only five questions to answer about the article. Hopefully, you’ll get at least four of them right. Enter your scores in the
Success Log Box.

Alter, Jo Anne. “Swap Your Home for Your Next Vacation,”
Family Circle , February, 1974, pp. 100, 108.

How would you like to pack up your family and
spend your vacation this year in a ski lodge high in
the Colorado Rockies? Or in a house with private
pool, minutes from Florida’s Disney World? Or in a
compact apartment in the heart of Manhatten? Or
how would you like to wake up each morning to the
gentle sound of the surf outside your California
beach house?

Sound like a come-on? Or a bank-loan promotion?
Well, it’s not. There are no gimmicks, no finance
charges and, best of all, no rent to pay. You may
be able to vacation very comfortably for little more
than the cost of getting there. There’s only one
requirement: You must exchange your home in
return. That’s all there is to it.

House-swapping isn’t a new idea. It’s been around,
on a small scale, for years. In fact, one organization,
the Vacation Exchange Club (also known as the Pan
Am Home Exchange Service), has been publishing
directories for would-be swappers since 1961. But
with inflation and devaluation adding upwards of 25
percent to 1974 vacation costs, house-swapping may
emerge this year as the vacation idea whose time has
finally come.

According to David Ostroff, who founded and still
runs the club, about 6,000 swaps have been arranged
through his club over the last 13 years. This year he
expects to do even better. The reason is simple:
Swapping makes a lot of sense.

By being temporary hosts, as well as guests, you
and your family can cut vacation costs right down
the line. You can eliminate hotel bills, restaurant ex¬
penses, tips and possibly even transportation costs
(many families exchange cars, too). And, with the

money you save, you may find you can take more —
and longer — vacations than you might otherwise be
able to afford.

There are other benefits. Besides enabling you and
your family to save a great deal of money, trading
homes offers your family extra comfort and conveni¬
ence. For example, instead of being cramped in one
or two cot-crowded rooms, with everyone getting in
everyone else’s way (and on everyone else’s nerves!),
a swapping family can select a home that provides
ample room and privacy. And there are other little
niceties that few hotels or motels offer — like room
for the kids to play, and a refrigerator to raid. Of
course, one not-to-be-overlooked advantage is that by
leaving your home occupied by invited guests, you
discourage visits by uninvited ones.

Still another swapping plus is vacation flexibility.
You and your children can make new friends in your
“adopted” community. You can use your home-
away-from-home as a base from which to explore an
area to your satisfaction. Or you can simply get away
from it all for a relaxing, refreshing change of scenery.

One of the nicest things about exchanging homes,
explains Mary de Baldo, manager of the Vacation
Exchange Club, is that the whole process is warm and
personal. “People who exchange homes seem to go
out of their way for each other,” she claims. “They
usually want to make their guests as comfortable as
possible. Most leave the names and phone numbers of
doctors, dentists, baby-sitters and neighbors. Some
even arrange for their friends to stop in and say hello.
Many leave food in the refrigerator to tide their
guests over until they can get to a local supermarket,
and most have their newspaper deliveries continued.

“The do-unto-others principle really seems to work
when it comes to swapping,” she continues. “People
tend to treat you and your belongings as they hope
you’ll treat them and theirs. In fact, last year, out of
5,500 subscribers, we had only one complaint —
about a house that was left messy.”

About two-thirds of the club’s listings are within
the continental United States. There are subscribers
in virtually every state in the union, says Ms. de
Baldo, with a large number in California, Florida and
New York. (There are also listings for Europe,
Canada, Mexico and other parts of the world). Sub¬
scribers offer everything from apartments and houses
to farms, chalets, ranches and seaside villas. Offers
sometimes include the use of cars, sailboats, trailers,
country clubs and second homes. And some of the
offers are extraordinary.

Here are some examples from this year’s listings:
“5-bedroom Manhattan brownstone, 4 baths, terrace
and garden.” “2-story house on lagoon in Gulf Shores,
Alabama; sleeps 14; maid, car, golf, boat.” “4-bed-
room home, Lake Oswego, Oregon, near Mt. Hood;
fishing, golf, plus ocean-front beach house 90 min¬
utes away.” “2-bedroom condominium in Honolulu,
ocean and mountain views.” “Rustic house in deep
woods, upstate New York; 3 bedrooms, fireplace,
pond.” “2-bedroom house, Sausalito, California; dra¬
matic view of San Francisco Bay; walking distance to
ferry.”

These are some of the elegant homes available for
exchange this year. And even if your abode seems
quite humble by comparison, you could still find
yourself trading keys with one of their owners. How?
It’s easy. Some families aren’t looking for luxury;
they’re looking for convenience. They may want to
visit friends or relatives; or they may want a base from
which to travel in your part of the country. And your
home may be just right for them.

One example of just such a swap is the exchange
recently arranged by Mr. and Mrs. Francis Furton, a
retired Detroit couple who moved to McAllen, Texas.
(The Furtons, incidentally, might well be called
super-swappers. They’ve exchanged homes 18 times
and, as a result, have traveled all over the world.)
Last summer, the Furtons decided to return to
Detroit to visit their five daughters and their daugh¬
ter’s families. But they didn’t want to give up their
privacy; so they decided not to stay with any of
their daughters. Instead, they exchanged homes with
a Detroit family whose 2-bedroom house was modest,
but comfortable and convenient.

What did the Detroit family get in return? Use of
the Furtons’ travel trailer — with which to tour
California, the Southwest and Mexico for over a
month — a vacation they’ll never forget!

Like the Furtons, many swappers indicate no pre¬

ference for either time of the year or geographical
area for their vacations. They’re open to virtually
any exchange offer.

What if your house is small, modest and located
in a run-down section of the community? Can you
swap houses for two weeks, say? Maybe yes and
maybe no. Some families feel that convenience is
paramount, and luxury a secondary consideration, so
you may have some takers. But if your dwelling is off
the beaten track and not near convenient transporta¬
tion, you may be out of the running.

If you think swapping sounds like a good idea for
you and your family, here’s the easiest way to start
the ball rolling. Join one of the dozen or so exchange
clubs. The Vacation Exchange Club, 119 Fifth Ave.,
New York, N.Y. 10003, is the oldest as well as most
well-established. (Among the other clubs, there are:
Holiday Home Exchange Bureau, Inc., Box 555,
Grants, N.M. 87020 and Adventures for Living, P.O.
Box 278, Winnetka, Ill. 60003).

Once you write away for details, you’ll get a
brochure, along with a subscription form. In the
case of the Vacation Exchange Club, you indicate
whether you have a house or apartment; how many
bedrooms it contains; the number of people in your
family; and, if you have any preferences, when and
where you’d like to exchange. Also, you might
describe the special features of your home or area in
15 words or less (cultural attractions; proximity to
large cities, universities, beaches; whether you wish
to exchange cars; and so forth). Then, you send the
form, along with a check for $9.50, and your home
is listed in one of the two 1974 directories. (Send
an additional $3.50 if you wish to include a photo¬
graph.)

As a member, you receive both 1974 directories;
the first is mailed out on February 15th; the supple¬
ment is sent on April 1st. (If you do plan to have
your home listed, write soon. The first directory
has already gone to press, and the cut-off date for
inclusion in the supplement is February 15th.) How¬
ever, even if you miss the publication deadline, you
may still send in $7 and receive both directories. And,
of course, you’re free to write to anyone listed.

Once you get your directories, get busy. Send out
at least a dozen letters (or photocopies) to people
whose homes or areas interest you. Naturally, the
more flexible you are, the better your chance of
finding a suitable swap. Describe your home and
community in detail. Once responses start coming
in, you can begin to narrow your choices, until you
decide who you’re going to exchange with. According
to Mary de Baldo, it usually takes about six follow¬
up letters and maybe a phone call or two to get
everything arranged.

When exchange-time comes, be sure to provide

your future guests with instructions on how to
operate appliances, thermostats and so on. Try to
leave maps, guidebooks and anything else you can
think of to make their stay easier and more enjoy¬
able. Then off you go — to enjoy what could be the
first of many rewarding home exchanges.

No matter where you decide to make your initial

exchange — afcross the country or in your own home¬
town (as one Santa Barbara, California, family did
last year), remember that there are 52 weeks, and 52
weekends offering you unlimited, low-cost vacation
possibilities throughout the year. And there are
thousands of people as eager as you are to try this
intriguing vacation.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1. House-swapping may emerge dramatically in 1974 due to

a. the fuel shortage

b. inflation and devaluation

c. stepped-up large scale advertising

d. many Americans’ increased leisure time

2. What are the people like, in general, who exchange homes?

a. fairly choosy in where they go

b. tend to be from the higher social classes

c. rather lackadaisical about caring for personal property

d. very thoughtful and respectful of others’ property

3. How many complaints were registered by the Vacation Exchange Club’s 5,500 subscribers
in 1973?

a. none

b. one

c. fifty-five — exactly one percent

d. more than seven hundred

4. The article indicates that many subscribers

a. advertise their homes on their own

b. remodel their homes so that they can trade

c. have their homes available all year long

d. keep their homes available only at the most popular traveling times

5. What does the author say is the best way to get started in house-swapping?

a. join an exchange club

b. decide where you want to go and when you want to swap

c. send a form letter to other swappers describing your home

d. run an ad in the personal column of the local newspaper of the community you wish
to visit

SUCCESS LOG FLEXIBLE READING

READING SPEED _

COMPREHENSION SCORE_

(20 points per correct answer)

WPM

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

100

READING PROGRESS GRAPH

UNIT 4

Directions READING EFFICIENCY INDEX_

1. Refer to the three Unit 4 Success Log Boxes and enter in the computer your three reading rates and three comprehen¬
sion scores, as the screen directs.

2. Record your Unit 4 REI above and on the REI Record page in the back of your Workbook.

3. Press to load the Reading Progress Graph. While the graph loads, read “How’s It Going?” below.

HOW’S IT GOING?

Are you feeling more comfortable reading at a faster rate? Are you gaining more confidence in your ability to learn
to read faster? Were you able to skim to find the author’s favorable point of view in “Swapping Your Home?” If you
slowed down, remember, using this skill may be new for you. Don’t expect to be proficient yet! Keep up your prac¬
tice! Try skimming interesting newspaper articles.

Be a flexible reader in your personal time, in your work, and in your recreational reading. Use your skimming
techniques to check out material you’re going to read. Decide whether you’re interested in the topic, whether it will
be easy or rough going, fast or slow going, or a combination of both. Get the gist of the article. Then, if you read it,
you’re better equipped to anticipate; to dig and delve into the facts and ideas and to even read between the lines.

Learning to skim will give you confidence , because you’ll be a more efficient reader and you’ll be saving yourself
TIME. You’ll hear much more about skimming in Unit 5. Now it’s time for congratulations! You’re halfway through
ATARI Speed Reading.

4. Enter your Pretest and Units 1-4 RETs when the screen prompts you to do so. (Obtain these from the REI Record
page in your Workbook.) Press Q32S33 after each entry.

5. Press QyQQ to view your graph.

101

UNIT

ON SIGHT

• To begin Unit 5 complete the steps in the STARTING UP section.

• Be sure you have inserted Cassette 3 with Side 1 up.

• After listening to the audio segment, turn to the Warm-up and read the directions.

103

WARM UP EXERCISE

Directions: This exercise is similar to the one in Unit 4 only you look for the antonym of the initial word. For example, if
the initial word is heavy, you would select the word, light, from among the choices, hearty, huge, night, light, and weight.

Again, start this activity at a beginning Reading Window Rate—between 60 and 90—and then quickly increase your
rate as you become familiar with the task. You may later want to repeat the exercise to practice making quick perceptions
at a still higher RWR. Record you results below.

WARM UP EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY MINUTES _

SCORE _

SECOND TRY MINUTES _

SCORE _

Note: Record the tape counter setting in the space provided at the beginning of the Phrase-reading exercise.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS YORN, THEN

RETURN

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE Tape Counter Setting_

Directions. Maintain your momentum! Challenge yourself to go as fast as you can. Don’t worry if your actual words-
per-minute rate is slower on the screen than when you read in the book. Reading with a Reading Window is a different ac¬
tivity from reading on your own. The purpose is to help you develop new reading habits. And as long as the Reading Win¬
dow is moving at a fast enough rate to challenge you, you are learning these new habits—learning to see and understand
more words in each fixation.

Look for the ideas as you read. At the end you should have a good preview of what the Paced reading selection is about!
Set your wpm rate when the screen appears and push the joystick button to begin. Record your rate below.

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY READING SPEED _

SECOND TRY READING SPEED _

WPM

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Paced reading exercise.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

105

Half and Half

PACED AND TIMED READINGS Tape Counter Setting_

Directions. Use your skimming skills to find out about “Cheerful Chatterbox the Chipmunk.” It’s light and delightful,
informative reading. Yet some facts are included, as well. Be ready to answer some detailed questions.

Read the first half of the story and answer the questions, and record your reading rate. But don’t take time to check
your answers yet. Read the second half of the story, then answer the questions and check them all. Record your scores in
the Success Log Boxes.

Enter your tones-per-minute rate and push the joystick button when you are ready to go. Don’t forget to increase your
tpm rate while you’re reading if you find the going easy!

Scott, Jack Denton. “Cheerful Chatterbox the Chipmunk,” National Wildlife ,

April/May, 1973, pp. 22-24.

The worst Snowstorm in a decade. Snowbound in
the house for three days. Then, finally, the storm
ended, a weak sun appeared. A bitter-cold day, the
snow surrounding us like a vast, foamy sea. I went
outside, cleared a path, shook snow from the bird
feeders, and shoveled an area where I could feed the
squirrels, and I heard Chip! Chip! Chip!

I knew the sound. But this was early February. It
couldn’t be! But it was.

Breaking out of the snow like fish surfacing were
tiny rusty heads. Chip! Chip! Chip! The sounds, clear
as metal striking glass, were coming from the heads.
The small red bodies surged from the snow into the
areas I had cleared, took a sunflower seed in either
cheek and dove back into the pool of white.

Three chipmunks had left their snug nests of
hibernation, braving the snow and the biting cold. It
was an incredible sight that keeps coming back to me,
a heartening reminder that courage and fortitude have
not vanished from our world. Of course, I should not
have observed that spectacular sight. In late winter,
unless the days are unusually pleasant, chipmunks, so
the naturalists tell us, are supposed to be sound asleep
underground.

Chipmunks have this way of breaking the rules, of
doing the unexpected, a quality that makes them
among my favorite wild animals. They are inquisitive,
interested in everything around them, gay, but ever
busy; a sign to me as I see one sitting on a stone wall
washing its face, that all’s right with the world. I am,
of course, prejudiced. When I was seven years old, I
had a pet chipmunk.

Our cat, a gentle female that liked to catch lively
objects but never harmed them, brought the
chipmunk proudly into the house and dumped it on
the floor before my mother. It was a tiny replica of
its parents, perfectly formed and colored. Short, flat

hairy tail, its upper body rusty with five black stripes
running from shoulder to rear along upper sides and
back. The two low stripes on the flanks divided by a
white band, cheeks crossed with a buff line below and
above the eyes, a dark stripe meeting the eye. Its top
reddish fur merged into creamy white on the belly.

After we dried it off (it was very wet from its
journey in the cat’s mouth) we noticed that it didn’t
have many teeth, so my parents judged it was about a
month old. After much pleading from me it was
decided to make it a member of the household. We
fed it warm milk with an eye dropper, and once in a
while some wheat germ, until all its teeth came in two
months later, then nuts of all kinds, with shelled
peanuts its favorite.

Watching all this with great interest was Elizabeth,
the cat. But she never touched Stripes, my chipmunk
pet, again. Stripes made his home in my mother’s
sewing basket and was extremely neat and clean. He
sang often, chirping like a cricket. He would permit
me to pick him up when he felt like it. If he wasn’t in
the mood, he’d give me a nip. I carried him in my
pocket and he seemed to enjoy it, settling down,
humming happily. He was not destructive, and was a
completely charming guest in our home for six
months. Then he disappeared. We never saw him
again. And I never again had a wild pet.

I have been fortunate in living in the countryside
most of my adult life, and always there are
chipmunks. Thus, for a long time, I have had an
opportunity to observe them and be charmed by
them.

Except for Tamias asiaticus in Russia, chipmunks
occur only in North America. Tamias striatus „ the
eastern chipmunk that I know, comes from a family
with 35 western species of the genus eutamias, of six
groups of ground-dwelling squirrels, varying in size

106

and coloring. The eastern has the most vivid stripes
and the strongest red.

From the evidence of fossil remains, it is believed
that the chipmunk traveled across the ancient
land-bridge of Bering Strait, but the direction,
whether it went from east to west, or west to east,
has not been established. Our eastern chipmunk
ranges over most of the eastern United States,
southeastern Canada, south to Louisiana, Georgia and
the Carolinas, with a relative in Florida and
Oklahoma.

Tiny three-ounce tigers

Researchers place the chipmunk population at
from two to four per acre; where I live in western
Connecticut I would double that. They are territorial
animals, defending their home ranges of less than 100
yards like fierce three-ounce tigers.

During the twice annual breeding season, males
compete vigorously, chasing one another up trees,
their tails straight up as they run. There is serious
rough-and-tumble fighting, and occasionally some
belligerent bluffing. I had one living close to our
flagstone terrace that sometimes could send another
male scurrying by casting a cold eye, and making a
few little forward quick steps.

A house guest named this male Lady Chatterley’s
lover. It was June and the love play was on. The
female, larger than the male, allowed him to pursue
her, and, ready for mating, to catch her. All the while
she chattered wildly. Then, both chattering and
chirping, there was fake fighting, much rolling on the
ground, patting of heads, nuzzling, and finally the
mating.

About 31 days later, the litter, from two to five, is
born. The first week the stripes appear as vague

outlines and hair starts to grow. In another week
young chipmunks are about three inches long, fuzzy
with fur and able to stand on their feet. In three
weeks they can hear; in another week their eyes open.
At this age they are miniatures of their mother. At
three months, if this had been an April birth, the
chippies would have been left to face the world. But
the June breeding such as I observed means the litter
was born in August, came topside in September, and
would not have left enough time to dig their own
burrows and stock them with food for the winter. So
the summer litter spends the winter in the mother’s
hibernation room.

Unusual hibernator

One of the most fascinating facets of the
chipmunk, in addition to its abundant charm, is its
unusual method of hibernation. That entire
mysterious situation is currently being studied by
medical researchers. Hibernators do not store food
for their deep sleep. But chipmunks do. Hibernators
gorge themselves, putting on a thick layer of fat on
which they exist while underground. Chipmunks do
not.

Chipmunks stay lean and graceful throughout their
lives, diligently storing food in their underground
dens for the long winter. Besides their seemingly
inexhaustible energy, chipmunks have two other
assets for this food storage: Amazing pouches and
deluxe dens. The pouches are the cheeks, flexible as
rubber, extending behind the jawbone onto the neck,
which can be reached only through the mouth. To
permit the easier entry of food, the chipmunk has no
teeth on the upper or lower jaw between the front
incisors and the back grinders.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1. The author was surprised when he saw chipmunks in February because

a. he was sure the “Chip! Chip!” was coming from somewhere else

b. they usually stay in the hollow of trees

c. they are usually hibernating

d. the recent blizzard killed many of the animals in the area

2. As a boy, how did the author get his pet chipmunk?

a. It had entered the house and made a nest in the sewing basket.

b. He had found a litter of babies and brought one home.

c. His mother found it lying half alive in the kitchen.

d. His cat brought it home unharmed.

3. The author compares chipmunks to “three-ounce tigers” because they

a. are striped like a tiger

b. are territorial animals and fiercely defend their area

c. hunt like tigers do

d. behave, when fighting, like tigers

107

4. About how long after birth do chipmunks leave the nest?

a. 3 days

b. 3 weeks

c. 3 months

d. 6 months

5. The chipmunk is an unusual hibernator because he

a. stores food in the trunks of trees

b. stores food in his pouches

c. is really active during the winter

d. puts on so many layers of fat

SUCCESS LOG PACED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(20 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

How much will chipmunks pouch and carry to
their dens? Naturalist John Burroughs pondered that,
offering one chipmunk five quarts of hickory nuts,
two quarts of chestnuts and enough shelled corn to
make a total of one bushel. The single chipmunk took
it all away in its cheek pouches, but refused further
offerings.

Storage of food is actually the second step in
preparing for hibernating. The first step is digging the
den. Finding soil where it can dig easily, the
chipmunk goes straight down for five inches, then
continues at an angle for three feet. The penetrating
shaft is two inches in diameter and twists to avoid
large rocks, roots and other underground obstacles.
I’ve watched them at it, and as they dig with forefeet,
almost in reflex motion their hind feet kick the soil
back and away. As they shape the den, forefeet
pushed out on either side of their faces, they use feet
and nose to bulldoze the soil back to the entrance.
Unlike woodchucks, chipmunks do not leave a pile of
freshly excavated earth beside their den hole to
attract enemies. They push it yards away. If one
chipmunk maintains a home for its lifetime of four
years, the den may reach a length of more than thirty
feet, have four or five off-shoot tunnels, six rooms
and four or five entrances, all hidden.

Most important is the foot-square sleeping area. It
is filled with broken-up dry leaves and grass.
Chipmunks are clever at transporting the leaves. After
clipping off the stems, they stand upright using their
forefeet like hands to roll the leaf into a tight
cigarette shape so it fits neatly crossways in the

mouth. Winter provisions are stored under the
leaf-bed, pushing it up almost to the ceiling. If there
is too much food, the remainder goes into a nearby
storage room.

All of the food, however, is not reserved for
winter. Chipmunks cannot take intense heat, and
during late July and August, they spend much time in
their cool dens, using some of the stored food which
they replenish until they retire for the winter.

Active in warm periods

After late October they slow down and may hole
up for winter from that time until December. But
they are persistent and tough; I once saw a pair still
topside on December 13. When in the den they plug
all entrances with soil, which soon freezes, protecting
them from outside enemies. They curl in a ball;
breathing and heartbeat slow; their temperature drops
to that of the den while their blood pumps slowly.
The sleep is torpid. But during warm periods, and
obviously at other times, chipmunks awaken and eat
the hard-stored provisions. And if they run short,
they may even break out and brave the winter as
those I saw did. By mid-March, unless it is very cold,
they are in the upper world again, and the hunt for
food beings.

Generally, people believe that the chipmunk is a
straight nuts-and-vegetable creature, but here again
the little striped animal surprises us. I watched one
catch a field mouse and eat it with gusto. He stalked
it much like a cat, belly to the ground. I also saw one
try to catch a small grass snake that escaped by
wiggling down a hole too small for the chipmunk.

108

One of the most graceful sights I have yet observed in
nature was a chipmunk in a meadow leaping after
Monarch butterflies, a ballet I watched until the
butterflies got smart and gained altitude. A chippy
will take out after most insects, virtually anything
that moves, from a beetle to a grasshopper. I was
delighted recently to see chipmunks feasting on elm
span worms and gypsy moths, and not so happy to
see one sitting upright munching an earthworm, the
meal dangling from its mouth like spaghetti. But
chipmunks do help gardeners by eating June bugs,
cutworms and wireworms.

There is no doubt that chipmunks know what they
are doing when it comes to dining. One of my
neighbors who has two sweet cherry trees knows the
cherries are at their best when he sees chipmunks in
the tree tops harvesting them.

Climbing is an attribute seldom credited to the
chipmunk. The fact is that chippy, while not as adept
as the gray or red squirrel, is very much at home in
trees. I have seen one 50 feet up in an oak tree,
stretched out on a branch enjoying itself like a cat
sunning on a windowsill. But the chipmunk usually
climbs for nuts, buds and seeds — not for frolicking as
the other squirrels do. He goes up very fast in a

no-nonsense scurry, comes down headfirst, clutching
the bark with sharp claws.

Chipmunks are supposed to flee at the sight of
danger or aggression. Yet I have often rescued them
from cats, or come upon a cat that has just released a
chipmunk and is sitting back watching it. At these
times of great danger, the chipmunk acts in a peculiar
fashion that I have never seen described in natural
history literature, or by natural scientists. The
chipmunk, instead of trying to escape, jumps straight
up and down, in a series of leaps like a puppet being
jerked on a string. Never will the cat attempt to take
the chipmunk while it is making these confusing
gyrations. Chipmunks are full of surprises.

I discovered another one while fishing in
Connecticut. A friend and I and his English setter
were walking along the bank, when out of the
underbrush popped a chipmunk. The dog, barking,
immediately scooted to the other side. Literally
surrounded, the chipmunk didn’t hesitate. It leaped
into the river and, tail high, easily swam to the other
side, climbed up the bank, shook itself, gave us a long
look, then disappeared into the brush.

Climb, dig, sing, fight, jump, stalk — swim. I
wonder what the chipmunk will come up with next?

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

6. What does the chipmunk do with the dirt he removes from his den?

a. uses it to build a barricade around the tunnel entrance

b. transports it to nearby streams

c. digs other tunnels to store it in

d. pushes it away from the entrance

7. How do chipmunks get leaves in their den?

a. Chew them up, fill their pouches, and dump the bits and pieces in their nest.

b. Roll them up with mud balls and carry them in their claws

c. Carry them by the stem.

d. Roll them up in a cigarette shape and carry them crossways.

8. Chipmunks spend time in their dens in late July and August because they

a. cannot tolerate intense heat

b. are busy raising their young

c. hibernate twice a year

d. need much extra sleep

9. According to the author, which of the following is NOT a part of the chipmunk’s diet?

a. cherries

b. roots

c. worms

d. insects

10. How does a chipmunk act when in extreme danger?

a. climbs up a tree as high as fifty feet

b. attacks the aggressor with its sharp teeth and claws

c. jumps up and down like a puppet on a string

d. burrows into the ground with lightning speed

109

SUCCESS LOG TIMED READING

READING SPEED _ WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE_%

(20 points per correct answer)

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Techniques section.

PRESS BO TO CONTINUE.

110

More Skimming Practice

TECHNIQUES

Tape Counter Setting.

Directions. Skim each selection, mentally picking out the key words and phrases as you go. At the end of the selec¬
tion, decide on the overall “theme” and write it briefly in the space provided. The selections have more paragraphs than
the ones in Unit 4, so you may want to note briefly to yourself, as you go, what each paragraph is about.

Don’t look back at the selection to write down your impression of it. When you have completed the eight excerpts,
check your ideas with ours in the Answer Key. Your statements should be fairly comparable to ours. If they include a
great deal more detail, perhaps you are “reading” instead of skimming. But if they contained insufficient informa¬
tion-more like one-word topics—then you may have been going too fast. Next time, look more closely for the important
words and ideas. Good luck.

Pauk, Walter. “The Art of Skimming ” Reading Improvement, II (Winter 1965),
pp. 29-31. Cited by Cassel, Russell N. (Ed. & Pub.) Educational Digest, 1965,

pp. 30, 47.

Textbooks. Skimming the textbook as a whole at
different times during the term, then skimming each
chapter as it is assigned are essential preludes to
effective reading and learning. Widely accepted by
academicians and psychologists is the principle that
people read with greater interest, understanding, and
speed those subjects about which they already know
something.

By skimming the chapter, the student can set the
stage for intelligent reading by first noting the organi¬
zational pattern, locating the main divisions, and read¬
ing transitional and summarizing paragraphs.

Finally, from the psychological aspect, the student
who plunges immediately into his assignment by
skimming has the best chance of overcoming inertia;
adopting a positive mental set toward his subject;
maintaining momentum; and probably, best of all,
achieving a higher level of concentration.

The Novel If a student’s assignment permits a
choice of novels, it might be good to skim some of
the chapters up to the middle portion of the book to
get an indication of whether it is interesting. Once
committed to a novel, the student may use several
methods for reading. He may read very rapidly the
first time through for the story, plot, setting,

Theme: _

characterizations, and conclusion; then the second
and third times, the novel should be skimmed once
for criticism and evaluation, and once for meditation
and speculation on the various concepts presented by
the author.

The Newspaper. The news items of a newspaper are
organized ideally for skimming. The title or caption
of the item is the conclusion, the first paragraph is
the summary, then each succeeding paragraph con¬
tains information in a descending order of import¬
ance. Each paragraph, too, is a unit in itself.

Classics and Esthetics. Some works should be read
carefully and thoroughly, almost word by word.
Some should be read aloud. But, if we think about it,
perhaps 95 percent of our reading is for information,
and about 5 percent is for esthetic reasons. It is,
therefore, an inefficient use of time to read every¬
thing at the rate used in reading classics. When read¬
ing for information, the objective should be to extract
as efficiently as possible exactly what we wish to
extract.

After all, in most writing the author attempts to
communicate ideas, and if we, as readers, can extract
these ideas on the run, then communication will have
been achieved.

Ill

Idyll, Clarence P. “New Florida Resident, the Walking Catfish,”
National Geographic Magazine , June, 1969, pp. 135, 851.

Two of these biologists, Vernon Ogilvie and Robert
Goodrick, have conducted research on Clarias for the
state; both are deeply concerned about its threat to
native aquatic life.

Mr. Ogilvie has drawn the wrath of some fish deal¬
ers and aquarists by declaring the walking catfish “a
disaster,” and “extremely frightening” to him as an
ecologist. Not long ago I talked to him at his labora¬
tory in West Palm Beach.

“In some bodies of water close to the original
area of infestation,” he said, “ Clarias is now the domi¬
nant fish. There is no doubt that it has shouldered
out the native fishes.”

I got the same story from Dr. Walter R. Courtenay,
Jr., ichthyologist at Florida Atlantic University in
Boca Raton.

“In almost any place where a concentration of
walking catfish is found,” he told me, “little else
remains except a few small fish called sleepers. The
catfish have displaced valuable game fishes like
largemouth bass, as well as panfishes such as bluegills,
shellcrackers, and warmouths. In one pond no bigger
than my living room, I caught 65 of these new cat¬
fish in two hauls of a seine, and it seemed there were
hundreds more.”

The walking catfish is exhibiting a classic response
to introduction into a new environment. Without
the biological checks and balances that control
animal — and even plant — populations in their native
lands, exotic species often multiply exuberantly,
sometimes completely displacing indigenous forms.
Moreover, they often bring new diseases and parasites.
With Clarias , Florida is again the loser, as it was with
the water hyacinth, introduced from South America
in 1884 and now throttling the state’s waterways.

Worse, I believe, is yet to come. It appears certain
that Clarias will spread farther, and that it will take
over many ponds, canals, and lakes. Its equipment
and its behavior virtually guarantee this. The south
Florida water area is an enormously intricate complex
of shallow lakes and ponds joined by drainage canals

and natural channels, and it is periodically flooded in
the rainy season. Populations of native fishes and
other aquatic animals are greatly depleted during
drought when many ponds and marshes go com¬
pletely dry and water levels in the canals are greatly
reduced.

But Clarias has the advantage of being able to
breathe air when waters are low, and even to lie bur¬
ied in the mud in extreme conditions. Or, better still,
it can trek off across country to other ponds or canals,
leaving its native competitors to perish, though its
primary motivation for walking on land seems to be
to seek food.

Clarias apparently reproduces very rapidly. It is
definitely breeding successfully in Florida, where it
spawns through much of the year.

The walking catfish is viciously aggressive. Even
the famous “man-eating” piranha avoids an adult
Clarias when put in the same tank. Photographer Bob
Sisson watched an “unbelievably ferocious” attack
by a 13-inch walking catfish on a 7 3 4-inch bullhead,
one of the native catfishes, which it eventually
killed.

“Clarias has already gotten into Lake Okeechobee,
and I’m holding my breath for what will happen
when it reaches Everglades National Park,” Vernon
Ogilvie told me. “It may have disastrous conse¬
quences.”

Both he and Walter Courtenay believe the catfish
will spread at least to central Florida. Mr. Ogilvie
thinks Georgia, Alabama, and even Tennessee may
not be exempt. Colder climate will presumably keep
the fish from moving farther north than that.

But walking catfish are in Florida to stay. Last
November the Game and Fresh Water Fish Commis¬
sion reluctantly gave up ideas of trying to eradicate
them, concluding that they were already too wide¬
spread.

Besides, as Vernon Ogilvie said sadly, “How do you
kill a fish that simply walks away when you poison its
pond?”

Theme:

112

Stokes, William. Whose Heir? Ship the Kids on Ahead.

A youth walked through our family room the other
day, and I thought there was something vaguely famil¬
iar about him. It turned out that he was one of my
sons.

He needed a haircut so desperately that I hadn’t
recognized him for an instant.

I gave him a couple of bucks and told him to spend
it at the barbershop. He looked at me with a shocked
expression. At least, I think it was shocked. It was
hard to tell with so much of his face covered up by
hair.

When he finally realized that I was serious about
his getting a haircut, he collapsed into a quivering
heap, alternately moaning and sobbing.

“Look,” I told him, “I didn’t say you had to give
blood or flesh. I just want you to get a haircut.”

“WHY?” he wailed. (Sometimes I get to thinking
that I have my kids trained ‘not to reason why, ours
is just to do and die,’ but not often.)

I told my wailing son that while it was not neces¬
sary for me to explain my haircut order, I was going
to make an exception in this case and try to do so.

First of all, I said — feeling one of my better
speeches coming on — you need a haircut from a
standpoint of safety. It is obvious that you are going

Madison, Wisconsin: Forrest Publishing Co., 1968.

to walk out in front of a truck or a car, because you
can’t possibly see. A haircut also will take care of this
bumping-into-the-wall problem that you must have.

Secondly — I was now using my fingers and hands
for gestures of emphasis — this long hair is not fair
to your mother. A mother likes to observe the growth
and development of her children, particularly their
facial features. I know for a fact that your mother
has not seen your face from the nose up for months.

“Get a haircut, Son,” I said in a fatherly tone, “and
show Mother your forehead. And do it for your old
Dad so that he can look you in the eye instead of the
hair.”

The son was pounding his head against the wall
now. It didn’t hurt him, of course, because of all
that hair, but it made an annoying thumping sound,
and I told him to stop it.

He staggered slowly out of the house and down the
street toward the barbershop, his hands in his pockets
and his head hanging down.

“Look at him,” I said to Betty, “his hair is so
heavy he can’t hold his head up.”

“Yes, she said, “it’s awful, isn’t it? He looks almost
as bad as you did back in high school when the wind
blew your ridiculous pompadour down.”

Theme:

Madson, John. The Mallard. East Alton, Illinois: Winchester Press, 1960.

Decades of waterfowl banding all over North
America, and countless recoveries of those bands,
have given biologists an insight of migration, length
of life, and other waterfowl mysteries. But one of the
most important discoveries was that migrating water-
fowl follow four huge, general routes down across
the face of the United States: the Atlantic, Mississippi,
Central and Pacific Fly ways.

Each spring and summer, state and federal water-
fowl experts join Canadian biologists on the northern
nesting grounds to trap and band waterfowl. Subse¬
quent band recoveries show the routes that waterfowl
fly to their wintering grounds, their dates of migra¬
tion, homing instinct, the ratio of hunting kill to the
total population, and many other things.

Banding also shows that different parts of the
nesting grounds supply different flyways, and since

the problems and populations of waterfowl vary
between these breeding grounds and flyways, the
most logical way to manage waterfowl is on a flyway
basis. For example, the Mississippi Flyway is the one
most heavily used by mallards. But this fly way is also
more heavily hunted than, say, the Central Flyway.
So although the Central Flyway may have fewer
mallards, it also has fewer hunters, and a 5-mallard
limit is often set in Colorado while a 4-mallard limit
prevails in Arkansas.

High above the banding crews, federal biologists
spend the summer flying “transects” — carefully
established sample routes over the best nesting
grounds — to determine the relative abundance of
waterfowl. This is not a count, for it is impossible to
accurately tally waterfowl on the myriad small pot¬
holes and prairie sloughs of the northland. The tran-

113

sect flights indicate relative trends, and whether
waterfowl numbers are higher or lower than the
year before. Only during winter, when waterfowl are

concentrated on open water on their wintering
grounds is an attempt made to count ducks and
geese.

Theme:

Every year in the United States there are over 200
million automobile tires disposed of, and no one knows
what to do with them. This statement accurately
describes the seriousness and magnitude of this
environmental problem in America. Old tires are buried
in landfills, used to create artificial reefs for fish, for the
recover of chemicals, and in asphalt for roadbuilding. In
some 30 states research programs are reported
underway attempting to determined what can be done
with pulverized rubber. Yet old tires more often than not
appear to end up as eyesores, cluttering both landscapes
and waterways, becoming a haven for rats and other
rodents.

Now a practical solution to the disposal problem has
been demonstrated . . .

... as a fuel in the manufacture of Portland cement.
This approach not only alleviates a national
environmental problem in disposal of old tires, but
achieves it at economic advantage in realization of

“Old tires: New fuel” p. 82-87,
Rock Products, Oct. 1980

significant energy savings . . .

The old tires are not shredded for burning but instead
are fed whole directly into kilns. The system begins with
forklift truck movement of tires from a storage pile onto a
conveyor. This carries the tires up a preheater tower to a
point where automatic weighing takes place. A constant
flow of tires to kiln feed is dependent on proper weight,
with the average movement being one tire every two
minutes. These tires enter the kiln via a chute and
through an air lock compartment which minimizes fuel
loss as entry of each tire takes place.

Tires enter at the inlet-end of the preheater kilns
where temperates of over . . . (1832F) ensure complete
combustion without experiencing any environmentally
negative aspects. There are no resultant odors or
remaining residue. The iron that is in the tires melts, and
along with ash material combines with the clinker
without affecting cement quality.

Theme:

Stokes, William. “Let’s Split,” Ship the Kids on Ahead. Madison, Wisconsin:

Forrest Publishing Co., 1968.

The trouble with this country is that not enough
people split wood.

There was a day, you know, when almost every
able-bodied individual, including women and children,
swung an ax as part of the daily routine.

Even in the summer, somebody had to hack up
wood for the cookstove. In the winter, there was
more wood splitting than snowball fighting.

Great chunks of oak had to be split small enough

to fit into either the furnace or the heater. This was
the kind of exercise you could get your back and
heart into. You had to learn how to hit a chunk of
wood so that the grain of it favored your efforts. A
good clean blow with just the slightest twist of the ax
head at the instant of impact would break open a
frozen hunk of wood as easy as cutting an apple in
two.

It would, that is, if you didn’t happen to get a hunk

114

that had a big knot in it. Then sometimes you had to
chop and swing at it until you were blue in the face —
and in the mouth, too.

These difficult chunks were always left until you
got down toward the bottom of the pile and there
wasn’t anything easier to work on. Ah, the hours of
my youth that were spent pounding away at a knotty
piece of oak. It’s enough to make me ache to this day.

My mother was not a first-rate wood chopper, as
females of the day went. I think she was too kind-
hearted and didn’t want to hurt the wood. However,
she could rustle up bread-baking-wood if the rest of
us were in hiding.

While I do not have any statistics to substantiate it,
I do believe that there was less per capita violence in
the days of wood splitting. It figures. If you had a
mad-on for somebody or something, all you had to do
was pretend that the object of your emotions was a

piece of wood.

Until it is proved otherwise, I will believe that more
emotional overhauling could be accomplished by the
psychiatrists if they would throw out their couches
and bring in an ax and a pile of good tough oak.

With benefits to accrue from both a mental and
physical standpoint, it is hard to figure out why some¬
one doesn’t start a nationwide chain of drive-in wood¬
splitting stands, where you could drive up and, for a
quarter, go in and smash your boss, or maybe even a
close relative, with an ax.

I say, we’ve got to revive w r ood chopping for young
and old. And don’t worry about the kids. Today they
catch it if they monkey around with an ax. I caught
it if I didn’t.

And I’ve got 10 toes, as well as a scar on my left
instep to prove it.

Theme:

Excerpt from “Should you Sell your House Yourself?” Better Homes and Gardens ,
May, 1973. © Meredith Corporation, 1973. All rights reserved.

9 -

Far and away the biggest single expense item in
selling a house is the commission you’ll pay the real
estate broker for his services. These fees, amounting
to six or seven percent of the sale price (depending
on where you live), cost Americans close to six
billion dollars last year.

Not that you shouldn’t employ the services of a
broker. Indeed, most experts agree that the average
person probably needs one.

However, considering the large amount of money
that is at stake, there is no reason why you should
not first make an intelligent try at selling your house
yourself before calling in a professional. If you go
about it correctly, you will in no way jeopardize
your chances to sell the house through a broker later.
In fact, many of the efforts you make in your own
behalf are things which you would have to do anyway
if you listed with a broker from the beginning.

Your attitude counts

Although some people succeed in selling their own
homes, many fail. If you succeed, you’ll save a lot of
money (probably several thousand dollars), you’ll

run your own show, and you’ll enjoy considerable
satisfaction. And if you fail, it’s no disgrace. That’s
why there are hundreds of brokers in the country.

Don’t start off with the idea that you may be
“lucky” and sell your house right away. You might
be, but it’s better to think that you are going to earn
that six or seven percent sales commission for your¬
self rather than paying it to a broker. As with other
do-it-yourself projects, you have to emulate pro¬
fessional methods if you are going to get professional
results. That means work. It also means that you must
be willing to stick close to home, especially on week¬
ends.

One of your obligations as a do-it-yourself seller is
to have the house ready to show at any reasonable
hour, seven days a week. Brokers usually make
appointments in advance before bringing a prospect
to your house. If you are acting as your own broker,
you may want to show the house to any prospective
buyer, even if he wasn’t considerate enough to call
in advance. This means keeping beds made, dishes out
of the sink, and the house in general good order at all
times.

115

You must have patience and a low boiling point selling. This may be hard to do when it is your own
with people. You have to learn to think like a sales- home — especially if people are not tactful about the
man, yet you must be objective about what you’re fact they do not like the house.

Theme: _

Excerpt from “Smart Shopping: What the New Food Labels Really Tell You,”
Better Homes and Gardens , May, 1973, © Meredith Corporation, 1973.

Ingredient labeling

Right now all nonstandardized foods must carry a except ice cream, butter, and cheese. Under the new
full statement of ingredients on the label, listed in regulations, standardized foods to which nutrients
descending order of predominance. This regulation have been added must carry nutrient labels,
doesn’t apply to those products for which the FDA Regulations also urge voluntary listing of ingred-
has established a “standard of identity.” The standard ients for standardized products. In answer to the
defines the basic ingredients and composition of demand for ingredient labeling, a number of corn-
standardized products such as mayonnaise or catsup, panies now voluntarily list the ingredients in stand-
Generally the law requires that labels on standardized ardized foods, and others are expected to follow
products state the name of the product, as specified suit. When this information is not on the label and
in the standard, and a list of optional ingredients, you want some idea of the ingredients in standardized
Normally, mandatory ingredients need not be listed food, write the FDA for a free copy of the standard
except for artificial coloring, flavoring, and preserva- for the product in question, or write the manufacturer
tives which must be listed for all food products f° r a breakdown of ingredients.

Theme:

Compare your ideas with those in the Answer Key.

Proceed to the Flexible reading and read the directions.

Flexibility and the Specialized Article

FLEXIBLE READING

Discussion. All of us are likely to encounter specialized articles frequently in our daily reading. These articles are
written for a select audience — people with a special interest in a field of subjects. Personal rewards of reading such
specialized articles are broader interests, new opinions, new perspectives, and facts you might need.

Here’s an opportunity to apply your specialized reading skills. The article is from The American Rifleman , published by
the National Rifle Association. It’s intended for people who are interested in shooting as a sport or hobby. Maybe you’re
one of them. Maybe not. But read “You Can’t Reload Your Hearing.” And see how straight you can shoot when you
answer the five questions at the end.

Directions. Time yourself, as usual. Go as fast as you can. Enter your scores and rate after you answer the five ques¬
tions in your Success Log Box.

Leonetti, Walter L.“You Can’t Reload your Hearing,” The American Rifleman ,
September, 1972, pp. 62-64. Reprinted from a fully copyrighted publication of
The National Rifle Association of America. Any further reproduction without

permission is prohibited.

It’s a great feeling to get away from it all — to be
at your favorite camping or hunting spot, to breathe
clean, fresh air and to rest in an atmosphere of for¬
midable silence. The birds, the wind, but little else
can be heard.

The sound of a shot is in extreme contrast to
conditions such as these. It appears louder than it did
back at the range, though of course it is not. As the
firing pin strikes the cartridge primer, the physics
governing the environment in which the shot is fired
are changed suddenly, wherever you may be.

One facet of these physical upheavals should be of
interest to every shooter, although most just shrug it
off. As the bullet or shot charge leaves the barrel, the
“boom” occurs; many shooters adjust to the gun’s
report, but how about the shooters’ ears? There’s a
ringing which persists for a few seconds, but it
always manages to disappear.

That ringing in the ears following any loud explo¬
sion is a sign from your inner ear that it’s been
traumatized. Repeated exposure eventually will cause
irreparable damage. Intermittent exposure will allow
the ear time to repair itself. This is a tentative expla¬
nation, since it’s an established fact that every person
has a different sensitivity, or damage point, with
respect to noise. The first shot you ever fire or the
three thousandth might cause permanent damage.
There is no way this sensitivity can be measured.

Exposure to gunfire will result in a hearing loss
composed of two elements: a temporary and a per¬
manent component. With intermittent shooting the
permanent component usually is slight, therefore a

recovery process occurs (the disappearance of the
ringing and the restoration of hearing efficiency to
normal levels).

With repeated exposure and subsequent inner ear
trauma the opposite is sometimes true. The temporary
component is slight and the permanent component
is devastating.

The human ear does have some capability to re¬
cover, though not always, to quasi-normal hearing
levels. But this is not usually the case. Recovery, if
achieved, is limited to a lesser extent of hearing loss.
To effect recovery, if any is possible, is to abstain
from all noise exposure. Translated, this means no
shooting at all.

Repeated hearing tests are the only assurance as to
whether a temporary or a permanent loss exists.
Hearing tests are plotted by frequency versus inten¬
sity (loudness) on graphs called audiograms. The
frequencies tested range from 250 to 8000 cycles
per second.

Within this range normal or abnormal hearing can
be tabulated. The vertical dimension demonstrates
the intensity required of a sound for the subject to
hear it. The more depressed is the mark plotted on
the audiogram for a given frequency, the more loss
has occurred.

The report of the firearm eventually will affect the
frequencies immediately above those required for
understanding speech. The ear is built in such a way
that only a particular band of frequencies is necessary
for conversation. This fact has been proven repeated¬
ly. The telephone, for instance, transmits and receives

117

this band of frequencies. In the audiograms the
speech area is from 500 to 2000 cycles per second.
The diagonally lined area indicates trouble areas for
speech. The lower limits of normal hearing should fall
above this area. Should the intensity level for more
than one frequency be found within this area, speech
reception has been affected.

Continued exposure to gunfire drives the intensity
thresholds for the frequencies above the speech range
lower and lower on the audiogram. Eventually this
continued trauma will begin to affect the upper limits
of the speech frequency range.

Once this has occurred it is usually too late to do
anything restorative. The common effects of this loss
are a persistent ringing, which seldom subsides, ac¬
companied by difficulty in understanding high fre¬
quency speech sounds. The previous sentence, for
example, contains approximately a dozen such
sounds. In American speech the high frequency ele¬
ments carry meaning and enable a person to differen¬
tiate between words.

The type of damage which has been discussed so
far is a type which is not correctable by surgery or
drugs. It is actually the physical destruction of major
components in the sensory and neural portions of
the inner ear.

Since restoration is nearly an impossibility then
prevention is definitely the route to be taken by all
shooters, regardless of the firearm used.

A 105 mm. howitzer will wipe out hearing much
more rapidly than will a .22 revolver — that’s only
logical — but the principle is the same. Most people
within the close proximity of a 105 will shove their
index fingers in their ears automatically in an attempt
at prevention. The rifleman or handgunner simply
cannot do this.

The small-arms shooter must resort to some artifi¬
cial means to reduce noise to acceptable levels. This
minimizes the possibility of hearing damage, whether
of the temporary or permanent type.

Three basic types of protection are available to
shooters. The ear cup or ear muff type completely
covers the ears and, by means of a tensioned head-
band, creates a closed space of air around and in the
ear. The cups should be made with a sponge perimeter
where they contact the head. The sponge’s compres¬
sible quality will compensate for irregularities and
maintain the protective air space. The entire ear
should be covered. If there is any point where the
border does not contact the head securely, then the
ear muff does not provide the protection it was
designed for.

The ear plug is a common device. The plug must
seal the ear canal. A simple test for the efficiency of
the seal is to strike two pieces of metal together. The
sound should be muffled; if it is not, your ears are

not protected. All ear plugs should be made of soft
rubber slightly larger in diameter than the ear canal.

A variation of the ear plug is the personalized
mold. The mold of the ear is cast; then a soft rubber
duplicate is forwarded to the purchaser by the manu¬
facturer. This mold is fine for adults but not for
adolescents or young teenagers. Due to the matura¬
tion process ear canal dimensions can change within
a matter of months. The change in configuration
could preclude an adequate seal.

The problem with any device inserted into the
ears is the difficulty of obtaining and maintaining
a seal against muzzle blast. Once the seal is broken
you are not protected.

The third type of device is the piston-type ear
plug. This is a device with minimal protective quali¬
ties that is inserted into the ears. The device is de¬
signed to protect against impact noise, such as gun¬
fire. A piston within a metal sleeve wrapped in a soft
rubber collar is rammed inward by impact sound
waves, thereby effecting a seal. Since this is an ear¬
plug, it should be tested as an earplug. The impact
noise resulting from metal to metal contact should
sound muffled. If it does not, there isn’t a seal.

Some shooters who use ear protection, test the
protectability by clapping their hands. This isn’t a
bad test, but it’s better to bang two pieces of metal
together because the metal test duplicates more
closely the sound you want to protect against.

At almost any rifle range shooters can be seen
firing the largest of pistols, revolvers and rifles with
nothing more than simple cotton plugs in their ears.
This has the effect of placing a screen door on a sub¬
marine! In no way does cotton significantly protect
against any noise, especially the type we’re talking
about. Cotton cannot create a seal. With wax-type
ear plugs it is possible to obtain a seal but difficult
to maintain one.

The previously mentioned protective devices are
based on three principles with the common cause of
sealing the ears from the environment. The ear cup
design isolates the ears from the sound with layers of
plastic, foam, sponge and air. The ear plug is designed
to lessen all sounds by trapping an amount of air
under the plug. The piston-type plug traps an amount
of air only a fraction of a second before the impact
noise reaches the ear. The trapping process is the
seal which protects.

The highest portion of the lower jaw borders on
the floor of the ear canal. Every time you place a
stock against your cheek you run the risk of breaking
the seal. The better fitting the stock, the less risk. A
good rule to follow is to test for the seal then cheek
your stock. Rather than fire, recheck the seal by
smacking two pieces of metal together. The checking
process sounds involved but should take no longer

118

than five seconds. Chewing gum or yawning can also
break a seal.

Of all the types of protection mentioned, only the
piston-type plug enables the shooter to hear speech,
provided the speaker is close enough. One drawback
of this type occurs when a stilf breeze is blowing. Due
to the piston nature the wind sounds as if it’s blowing
at 50 m.p.h. rather than an actual 10 m.p.h.

With other types in place, conversation is not a
simple matter although it is possible if both persons
are in close proximity and raise their voices.

Advertising literature points to the low frequency
nature of speech. For all intents and purposes all a
person needs to understand speech is a frequency
band from 500 to 2000 cycles per second as pre¬
viously mentioned. What kind of frequencies or band
of frequencies are we dealing with when a shot is
fired? Actually, it’s not known. All sounds in nature
are a composite of frequencies. The frequency ques¬
tion is of some interest, and eventually someone will
catalog all firearm reports. This has the appearance
of a couple of months of work, but we must consider
the effects of such variables as powders, bullets,
muzzle brakes, chokes and barrel lengths.

As is quite evident, the task would require a life¬
time, since all of these factors will have a definite
bearing on the resulting blasts’ frequency range.

Are the frequencies that important? The answer,
quite simply, is no. The factors that cause damage to
the hearing apparatus are a combination of the loud¬
ness (which everyone concedes) and the “impact”

nature of the noise. Impact noise is quite loud,
usually in excess of every person’s threshold of pain
for hearing. As you squeeze the trigger you’ll reach
the point at which the “boom” will occur. The boom
lasts a few thousandths of a second. At the most the
report is one yard from your ears. Of course the
louder the report the greater the damage, either tem¬
porary or permanent. Considering the difference in
sensitivity between people, the point at which damage
occurs could be the first report of a .22 long rifle
cartridge or the six hundredth report from a .44
Magnum. The report does get worse with increasing
calibers, shorter barrels and hotter loads. Since a
majority of riflemen are right handed, the resulting
damage is more pronounced in the left ear, since it is
pointed towards the muzzle. The opposite is true for
left handers.

The caliber of gun you shoot should not be used
to determine whether you protect your hearing. All
ears should be protected, especially those of ob¬
servers, both outdoor and indoor. If you value your
hearing and can’t part with shooting, your only
alternative is protection. If you decide to protect,
then use some or all of the equipment mentioned.
Combinations can be worn if desired.

Whatever you shoot, damage will result from
repeated exposure. Without protection, eventually
you will find yourself in a doctor’s office paying
him to tell you that nothing can be done for your
hearing loss and that, if you care anything about
your hearing, you’ll have to give up shooting.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1. Intermittent, as compared to repeated, exposure to gunfire

a. causes severe permanent trauma in the inner ear

b. usually causes only slight permanent damage to the ear

c. causes only slight immediate damage, but has a cumulative permanent effect

d. almost always causes ringing in the ears, which is a sure sign of hearing loss

2. The best way to recover from a severe hearing loss is to

a. stop shooting

b. take a course in lip reading

c. submit to therapeutic surgery

d. purchase a high-quality hearing aid

3. The main problem with ear plugs for shooters is

a. getting them out after long use

b. to maintain the seal against muzzle blast

c. that they frequently lodge in the inner ear

d. that they must be changed frequently to fit the ear canal

119

4. Which two factors combine to cause damage to the hearing apparatus?

a. rifle caliber and loudness

b. frequency and impact of the noise

c. loudness and nature of the noise

d. loudness and proximity of the noise

5. A shooter’s ears should be protected

a. whenever he shoots

b. whenever he fires a .44 Magnum

c. when he fires a short barrel rifle

d. when he shoots anything larger than a .22 caliber

SUCCESS LOG FLEXIBLE READING

READING SPEED _

COMPREHENSION SCORE_

(20 points per correct answer)

WPM

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

120

READING PROGRESS GRAPH

UNIT 5

Directions

READING EFFICIENCY INDEX

1. Refer to the three Unit 5 Success Log Boxes and enter in the computer your three reading rates and three comprehen¬
sion scores, as the screen directs.

2. Record your Unit 5 REI above and on the REI Record page in the back of your Workbook.

3. Press maiaum to load the Reading Progress Graph. While the graph loads, read “Make Your Life Easier” below.

MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER

Take a moment to quickly review your progress. Study your graph when it appears. Is the REI for each unit ac¬
curately showing your progress? We hope it’s useful as a basis for comparing your results.

What was your beginning reading rate? What is it now? Has it steadily increased or have you reached “plateaus”
and leveled off for a lesson or two? Most people experience plateaus where their rate seems to stay the same for a
while. Don’t get discouraged! Keep trying and you’ll see more improvement.

Give yourself a pat on the back for making a good investment in yourself. You spent most of your life reading at
your beginning rate. Now, in only several hours you are reading faster—saving time and becoming a more efficient
reader. Even reading 100 words per minute faster is a great increase! Keep up the hard work and use your new skills.
Put them into practice in your daily life, and make life easier. Feel the effects of beginning to achieve more, per¬
sonally and professionally. Stick to your guns! And continue your progress. In the units that follow we’ll give you
more help in reaching your goal to read faster and more efficiently — the ATARI way.

4. Enter your Pretest and Units 1-5 REI’s w hen the screen prompts you to do so. (Obtain these from the REI Record
page in your Workbook.) Press after each entry.

5. Press

START

to view your graph.

121

UNIT

MATCHMAKING

• To begin Unit 6 complete the steps in the STARTING UP section.

• Be sure you have inserted Cassette 3 with Side 2 up.

• After listening to the audio segment, turn to the Warm-up and read the directions.

123

WARM-UP EXERCISE

Directions. In this Warm-up drill phrases instead of words will appear in the center of the screen in the Reading Win¬
dow. An initial phrase will occur and then several phrases will appear below it. Push the joystick button when you see the
initial phrase reappear.

Set your beginning RWR Between 60 and 90. Then increase it as you proceed through the exercise. You may want to
repeat the exercise, once you are familiar with the format. Push the joystick button to begin. Record your results below.

WARM-UP EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY MINUTES

SCORE _

SECOND TRY MINUTES

SCORE _

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Phrase-reading exercise.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE Tape Counter Setting_

Directions. Keep up your pace! Don’t slow down! Set your rate 50 words per minute faster than you did for Unit 5.
Look for the gist of the material along with a few facts. Push the joystick button when you are ready to begin. Record your
rate below.

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY READING SPEED _

SECOND TRY READING SPEED _

WPM

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Paced reading.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

125

Some Serious Skimming

PACED READING

Tape Counter Setting.

Directions. The Paced selection deals with a timely topic, energy, and contains a number of facts. See if you can get
the gist — and some important facts — at a rapid rate. Skim when you can. Set your tones-per-minute rate and push the
joystick button to begin and when you finish.

Whether you’re remodeling, building a new house or
replacing the water heater in your present home, this
may be the time to consider heating your water with the
sun. In many homes solar energy can supply 50% or more
of household needs and, assuming proper installation of
an efficient system, it can do the job economically except
in those rare places still blessed with bargains in
conventional fuel rates.

Installing a solar hot water system is a simple way to
get acquainted with the virtues of solar energy without
investing in an expensive space-heating setup. No drastic
alterations to the house are required, structural
insulation can remain the same, and rooftop collectors
that gather the sun’s rays are modest in cost and size
compared with those required for space heat.

Once installed, a solar system provides nonpolluting
energy that is exempt from ever-rising fuel prices.
However, there are situations in which solar hot water is
neither practical nor economical. The location and shape
of your house and property may rule it out. The pattern of
your family’s water use may not conform to the way solar
heat is delivered. The cost of installation and a continuing
need to rely heavily on backup energy during prolonged
cloudiness could render a solar system impractical.

Heating water with the sun is basically uncomplicated.
Shallow rectangular boxes covered with glass or
transparent plastic collect heat in absorbent material,
usually black or some dark color. Liquid or air
circulating through the panels picks up the heat and
delivers it to a separate tank for later release.

In the simplest setup — called a direct, or
thermosiphoning, system — plain water heated in the
collectors flows through pipes to a tank installed in the
attic or on the roof. Household hot water is drawn
directly from the tank, which is resupplied by pipes from
the public supply or a well. A system like this is relatively
inexpensive because it requires little maintenance and
no pump; water is fed via gravity to faucets in rooms
below. But with such a system the underpinnings of the

Selection: “Where Solar Heat Pays Off.” Reprinted with
permission from Changing Times Magazine , (c) 1980
Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc., July, 1980.

attic floor or roof must be sturdy enough to support the
weight of the tank. And because the water is used
directly, no toxic substances can be added to prevent
corrosion or freezing. This makes the system impractical
in places with hard or acidic water or severe winters,
though a manual or automatic valve for draining the
water can be installed.

With the other main kind of solar water heater —
called an indirect, or closed loop, system — heat gathered
by the collectors is stored in a tank that is usually paired
with a conventional water heater nearby. The fluid used
to absorb heat from the sun is not the water you draw
from the tap, but a liquid contained in a closed system
(like your car’s radiator) that transfers the sun’s heat to
the water supply by a heat exchanger, which may be a
large coil either inside the storage tank or wrapped
around it. A pump intermittently cycles the liquid with
the protective chemicals through the collectors and back
to the heat exchanger without contaminating the
household water.

The crucial elements of a system

If the idea of solar hot water appeals to you, consider
the logistics involved. Comparatively small collectors —
30 to 100 square feet, depending on climate and your
water consumption — can provide a steady supply of
water at a temperature of about 140°F. A mixing valve
can be installed to keep water from becoming
dangerously hot.

Collectors facing south are usually most efficient,
though a case can sometimes be made for facing them
■ westward to take advantage of higher late-afternoon
i temperatures. Angling collectors correctly to catch the
sun’s rays is as important as which direction they face.
Generally, the angle should correspond to the latitude of
your home. The farther north you are, the steeper the
angle, though a deviation of ten degrees either way is
i unimportant.

i Collectors set at sharp angles obtrude above the roof

126

line. Consider whether they can be located in a spot that’s
unshaded both summer and winter — on the ground,
perhaps, or against a wall, or installed as an awning. If
not, what do town ordinances or your neighbors say about
the esthetics of rooftop structural changes like that?

Inside the house, can pipes from outdoor collectors be
installed without major disruption? Is there space near
the existing water heater to locate a storage tank that has
about an 80-gallon capacity if you are a family of four?

Except in regions where warm temperatures are the
rule, you could not count on solar energy for all your hot
water. Even in ideal climates, solar units should have a
separate backup system to provide hot water when a few
days of thick clouds block the sun. This means you must
retain your conventional system and pay for some energy
source to make up for the free but incomplete service of
the sun.

A solar-heated portion of 50% of household hot water is
usually most practicable, but in some areas you can get
higher percentages. In Florida, for example, a solar
water heater can provide up to 75% of a family’s
requirements. In that state, where water heating
accounts for about 25% of the average household’s energy
cost, some users report savings of $10 to $15 on each
monthly utility bill when the electric backup unit is set
constantly at 140°F. The farther north you are or the
cheaper the conventional fuel you use, the less you can
expect to save with solar hot water, with some exceptions.

The collector area you need depends on the number of
household users as well as geographic location. With the
collector sizes listed below, homeowners can expect to get
at least 50% of annual requirements.

household members

collector

size

square

feet

Billings, Mont.

Birmingham, Ala.

Burlington, Vt.

100

Chicago, Ill.

100

Jacksonville, Fla.

San Francisco, Cal.

Tucson, Ariz.

The sizes were calculated by Philadelphia’s Franklin
Research Center and appear in Hot Water From the Sun,
a new book sponsored by the Department of Housing and
Urban Development in cooperation with the Department
of Energy. Estimates included in the same volume, to be
sold by the Superintendent of Documents, should give
you an idea of recent costs of installing systems designed
for areas where protection from freezing is required.

collector size
in square feet

installed
in new homes

installed

in existing homes

$1,450

$1,600

1,900

2,050

2,300

2,550

2,750

3,000

100

3,200

3,500

Prices do not take into account the federal
government’s new 40% tax credit or state credits, which
would lower the cost substantially for taxpayers taking
advantage of such provisions. On a unit costing $2,000,

127

for example, you could subtract $800 from income taxes
you owe Uncle Sam, to say nothing of additional tax
breaks on income and property taxes now allowed by
many states and municipalities. Arizona, for example,
grants an income tax credit of 35%, Massachusetts a
property tax exemption for 20 years following
installation. Ask your state tax office about its policy.
Additional information on tax incentives and other
aspects of solar installations is available from the
National Solar Heating and Cooling Information Center,
P.O. Box 1607, Rockville, Md. 20850; or call toll-free, 800-
523-2929, in Pennsylvania 800-462-4983, in Alaska and
Hawaii 800-523-4700.

Another financial break will be coming in a new
federal program to lower the interest rates on loans for
solar installations. Under the solar bank program the
interest for financing a solar project would run about
half the going rate for ordinary consumer loans. Details
of the program, recently approved by Congress, are
being worked out.

Figure what proportion of your hot water needs might
be obtained from the sun’s heat, how much you would
have to invest to get that much solar energy, and how long
it would take to recover your initial investment. You may
want to seek help from SOLCOST, the Department of
Energy’s computer program, which can not only work
out figures in terms of specific solar applications in
various climates but also show how purchasing solar
units would compare in the long haul with putting the
same money in another investment. Information about
SOLCOST is available from International Business
Services, Inc., 1424 K St., N.W., Third Floor,
Washington, D.C. 20005. And for $35 you can have a
printout of an analysis done for your individual situation.
To assemble some of the required information, you may
have to consult a local heating engineer, builder or utility
company. For detailed information on getting a
SOLCOST analysis, write to SOLCOST Service Center,
2524 E. Vine Dr., Fort Collins, Colo. 80524.

Standards and certification

Federally approved standards covering materials and
performance are still being developed jointly by the
government and several private testing groups.

Voluntary standards for collectors, not whole systems,
have been developed by the Solar Energy Industries
Association, which authorizes decals with the
association’s initials (SEIA) for display on products of
complying manufacturers. A list of approved makers
meeting minimum standards is available from the
organization, Suite 800, 1001 Connecticut Ave., N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20036. Individual states have
developed standards of their own. Florida, for instance,
requires that collectors meet certain standards for
materials and construction before they carry a
certification label of the Florida Solar Energy Center.

Experience in Florida shows the need for such
standards. An on-site inspection of 60 solar hot water
systems, installed before adoption of more stringent
rules, found serious operating or installation flaws in all
but 16; many owners were unaware of the problems.

Choose a licensed contractor who has local experience
with solar installations. Ask for a list of customers and
talk to them about their experiences with solar hot water,
taking into account differences in size and type of backup
heat. The local Better Business Bureau or consumer
protection office should be able to report on any previous
complaints against the seller.

Brands and types of equipment you’ll be asked to
consider can be confusing. In cold climates or when
extremely hot water is needed, a flat plate collector with
double glaze and an absorber with a selective coating is
more efficient than one with a single glaze and
nonselective surface. The more efficient the collector, the
higher the price, but double-glazed collectors are usually
required only in the severest climates.

Does a maintenance contract go with installation? If
not, find out who does repairs and whether parts will be
available. Ask for a warranty of at least one year on the
installers’ workmanship. Collectors depending on liquid
for heat transfer usually carry five-year warranties,
though other parts of the system may carry individual
protection. Once the system is installed, have the
contractor or a representative of the primary
manufacturer of the system check it out for proper
operation.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1. As a home-energy supply, solar energy

a. can meet all your heating needs

b. serves a double use as a hot tub and heater

c. can supply about 50% of your household needs

d. is really only practical in hot, sunny areas

128

2. In a closed loop system, the water used

a. comes from your tap

b. is recycled from your previously used bath/dish water

c. circulates in a system like a car radiator

d. is heated exclusively by the sun

3. Heat collectors are generally most efficient when

a. facing westward to catch higher afternoon temperatures

b. facing in a southerly direction

c. lying flat (when possible) to gain greater surface reflection

d. placed at a 10° angle

4. A thermosiphoning system is not practical where the

a. attic floor is weak

b. winters are severe

c. water is acid

d. all of the above

5. To keep solar heated water from becoming dangerously hot

a. the collector panels must face north

b. a flective covering can be pulled over the collector

c. auxiliary tanks eject cold water into storage tanks

d. mixing valves are used

6. Solar collectors are commonly placed on the roof

a. because it is the hottest area around a home

b. due to their large, inconvenient site

c. because the neighbors are less likely to see them

d. but can be located in a variety of other places

7. The effective size of your solar collector depends on

a. how much space your living quarters provide

b. how strong your building structure is

c. the average sunny days in your area per year and the cost of local utilities

d. the number of people in the house and your location

8. The price of solar heat

a. is lowered by tax credits and varying statewide tax breaks

b. is reduced by 60% in federal government tax credits

c. is free because nobody owns the sun

d. is about 25% less than the cost of burning buffalo chips

9. Standards covering solar heating materials and performance

a. are the same sort of bureaucratic boondoggle we all know and love

b. guarantee interchangeable parts

c. were demanded by unionized solar heating installers

d. are needed to reduce the many complications and flaws in the earlier installations

10. The article suggests that solar installations be handled by

a. Sears

b. any building contractor

c. specialized solar heat installers

d. the money saving homeowner

129

130

TIMED READING

Directions. The next article on using windmills for energy is like the last one. It's filled with facts and figures. How did
you do with the Audio Pacer? You may need to adjust your tpm rate a bit. But read rapidly and apply your skimming
skills. Answer the questions and record your scores in the Success Log Box. Press the joystick button to begin reading
and again when you finish.

Selection: Pullen, John J., “Will It Pay You to Put Up a Windmill?”
Reprinted by permission from Blair & Ketchum's Country Journal. Copyright ® July 1980

Country Journal Publishing Co., Inc.

At midmorning of April 12, 1979, a pleasant day with
the still-leafless treetops swaying in a moderate breeze, I
joined an unusual group gathered at the home of
Rosemary and Alan Hanks in Madison, Connecticut, on a
hill overlooking the East River about a mile north of its
outlet into Long Island Sound. Conspicuous on the scene,
and most curious, was the presence of men in yellow hard
hats from the Connecticut Light & Power Company.
They were there on private property to help install a
windmill, which might have moved a casual observer to
ask, “What hath the energy crisis wrought? Are the wind
folk now in bed with the electric utilities?”

When I arrived the CL&P fellows were digging a hole
in which to plant a 70-foot wood pole, which was lying
nearby. Their machines included a 50-ton crane, a
backhoe, a line truck with cherry picker, an earth
tamper, and an air compressor. “This is overkill,” the
foreman told me. “You don't need a fifty-ton crane to put
up a three-hundred-pound wind generator. But it's what
we had available.” The generator itself, which was to be
mounted on top of the pole, was about 6 feet long and 2
feet across, with a three-bladed propeller 13 feet in
diameter. Across its gleaming fiber glass nacelle was
lettered the word ENERTECH, the name of the
manufacturer (also a distributor of other types of wind
plants). Busy supervising the installation of the
generator were Eugene Butler and Peter Kaminsky of
Energy Alternatives, Inc., a distributor of energy
equipment with a home office in Greenfield,
Massachusetts. At odd moments they discussed with me
a feature of the machine, known as the Enertech 1500,
that represents something new in windmill technology.
The Enertech 1500 produces alternating current (AC)
that is identical to 115-volt, 60-cycle utility power
supplied to your home; it is connected by a simple plug to
any 20-ampere wall outlet, and wind-generated
electricity then flows directly to lights and appliances in
the house. If there is a shortage, the electric utility
automatically makes up for it, and if the wind produces
more than is being used, the surplus flows into the
utility's distribution system. This arrangement
eliminates the need for a set of storage batteries, which
has traditionally been one of the costliest components of a

wind-powered system.

Representing the utility was Robert W. Goodrich of
Northeast Utilities (parent of CL&P). Asked if Northeast
was planning to offer a windmill-installation service, he
said, “No, that will most likely continue to be done by
private contractors. What we are doing here today is part
of a two-year experiment we are conducting along with
Energy Alternatives. There is another Enertech 1500
installed at Colrain, Massachusetts, up in the Berkshires,
about a thousand feet above sea level. We're
instrumenting that house and this one here in Madison to
gather data on wind power both at a shoreline location
and one up in the hills.” One of the things utilities like
about the Enertech 1500, Dr. Goodrich said, is that it
automatically stops generating when there is a utility
power failure, so that wind-generated power cannot be
fed into a “down” utility line and shock linemen who may
be repairing it. (As this fail-safe feature indicates, the
Enertech 1500 is not at present a stand-alone, or back-up
system. It is designed to slow down your consumption of
utility power and reduce your electric bill.

By early afternoon the pole at the Madison site was in
place and securely guyed. The generator was lifted to the
top of the pole and attached. The connecting cable and
accessory equipment were installed. At 2:40 p.m.,
whirling with a sound like the distant beating of wings,
the propeller started making red, white, and blue circles
in the sky. Almost involuntarily, everybody cheered. On a
control box inside the house, a meter showed that the
Enertech 1500 had begun to deliver.

A fast, simple operation. The cost? In this case, I was
told, Northeast Utilities had contributed the pole and the
installation out of its research budget, but the normal
cost is reasonable. The wind turbine generator and its
control system as of the end of 1979 was priced at about
$3,475 F.O.B. Norwich, Vermont. The additional cost —
the pole or tower, installation, and wiring — may run
from $1,000 to $4,000 depending primarily on the height
and the type of pole or tower. (A wood utility pole, if it can
be used, is less expensive than one would think.) It was
obvious that much planning and technical expertise had
gone into this accomplishment, so I was not surprised to
learn that Enertech's chief design engineer is Henry

131

Clews, a nationally known pioneer in wind-energy
systems. Driving home from Madison, I couldn't help
thinking about another trip I had made to East Holden,
Maine, where Henry Clews was running his own
business, the Solar Wind Company, almost five years
previously. (See “Energy from the Wind,” January-

February 1975.) A lot of wind has gone over the mill since
then. In 1974 I could identify only one U.S. manufacturer
of wind turbine generators. Now there must be twenty-
five; there are generous federal and state incentives for
installing windmills; and there is a federal program to
encourage and aid the commercial development of wind-
power.

Back in 1974, struggling by himself in Maine, Henry
Clews was a distributor for a couple of imported wind
machines, and he quickly learned a lot about the
windmill business as distinct from the windmill art. “We
had thousands of inquiries,” he told me, “probably more
than fifty thousand, but of those only a small percentage,
maybe one in a thousand, turned out to be buyers. If it
hadn’t been for the little booklet ‘Electric Power From
the Wind’ that I wrote and sold, I probably wouldn’t have
been able to stay in business. Eventually I sold the
franchises for the imported machines and began to work
on a design of my own. I actually built several prototypes,
but I didn’t put any into production. They were direct-
current (DC) battery-charging types, and the problem
was that none of them could ever be competitive with
utility rates. So it didn’t seem to me that they’d ever have
widespread acceptance. It wasn’t until I closed down
Solar Wind, spent a summer riding a bicycle across the
United States and then went to work for Enertech that I
got started on the new idea.

“The new approach came about as a result of a project
we did at Enertech for Xerox Corporation, making a
bicycle-powered generating system. They wanted a
bunch of little units that children could pedal to generate
electricity that could be fed directly into a power line to
light up the White House Christmas tree — a sort of
public relations project. We built twenty of these. In
doing so, we learned a lot about using induction
generators to feed power directly into an AC line.”

This is a key point. The machines traditionally used in
wind systems — the DC-producing generators and the
AC-producing alternators — cannot accomplish this
direct feed-in, because as wind speed changes they turn
out an electric current with varying voltage and
frequency, not synchronous with utility power.
Therefore their output must be stored in batteries. Since
batteries accept and supply only DC, the current from an
alternator must be changed to DC by an appropriate
device before storage. When electricity is drawn from the
batteries it can go directly to lights and some appliances
that will function on DC; but many appliances require

AC, and for these there must be an inverter change DC to
AC. The inverter is expensive and uses up a good deal of
power just in running itself. All rather complicated.

The induction generator that Henry designed into the
Enertech 1500 produces AC that is always synchronous
with that of the electric company, therefore it can simply
be plugged into a wall outlet, eliminating the need for
batteries and inverters. The induction generator is
actually (and should be called) a motor-generator. When
electric power is fed into this machine it causes a rotor to
turn and a mechanical driving force to be produced; it is
then acting as a motor. But mechanical force, such as that
of the wind, can be applied to turn the rotor and do the
opposite — that is, cause electricity to be produced. It is
then acting as a generator. Induction motors (generators)
are standard, off-the-shelf items, so their cost is quite
reasonable, and millions of them have been in use for
decades, so their reliability has been proven, and the
bugs have been pretty well worked out.

Another noteworthy feature of the Enertech 1500 that
would seem to make for simplicity and trouble-free
operation is the power train. One problem in windmill
design is to get all the power possible at low wind speed,
but to prevent high-speed operation that could destroy
the machine. Traditionally, many manufacturers have
provided this overspeed control by means of a variable-
pitch propeller. Instead of adding this mechanism,
Enertech uses a fixed-pitch design based on a “rather
subtle” (as Henry calls it) aeronautical principle that
sends the blades into a progressive stall when wind speed
gets too high. At the same time, the propeller is efficient
at low wind speed. It is not self-starting, but this potential
difficulty is easily overcome. Utility power is used for the
first few seconds to bring the machine up to synchronous
speed as a motor; then the wind takes over, and the motor
becomes a generator. Even after start-up a small amount
of electricity from the utility continues to flow through
the machine to energize the magnetic field necessary for
generating electricity. If there is a utility “outage” and
this flow stops, wind-generated electricity also stops
perforce. This is the ultimate fail-safe feature that
protects utility linemen. In addition, the Enertech 1500
has an electro-mechanical brake. Operation of the motor-
generator is controlled by a small logic circuit that
receives signals from an anemometer located on the
tower near the windplant. When the anemometer
indicates that wind speed is at least 11 mph, the brake is
released, and the machine is “motored up” to
synchronous speed. If wind speed drops below 8 mph (at
which point the motor-generator would start drawing
instead of generating power) or if utility power fails, the
brake is automatically applied, and the wind machine
stops.

132

Will a windmill pay where you live?

The amount of electricity a wind turbine generator
produces varies with wind speed. For those who have
forgotten their electrical terms, a brief refresher: a watt
is the basic unit for measuring the electricity a piece of
equipment is producing or using. A kilowatt (kW) is 1,000
watts. A kilowatt hour (kWh) is 1,000 watts produced or
used for an hour or the equivalent; for example, 100 watts
produced for ten hours. Enertech has designed the
Enertech 1500 to reach its rated output of 1.5 kW at a
wind speed of 22 mph and to produce roughly 370 kWh a
month at a site where winds average 12 mph. The rating
and claimed output of any wind generator must similarly
be related to specified wind speeds.

Although the discussion that follows uses the Enertech
1500 as an example, it is mostly applicable to all
windmills. To begin with, on a general basis, wind
systems are not for everyone. They are best suited for
windy locations where the cost of commercial power is
unusually high. They are better suited for rural or
semirural locations than they are for urban or suburban
areas where building and zoning regulations, as well as
interference with the wind caused by nearby structures,
may be encountered. Given a location that seems
generally favorable, the most critical remaining factor is
average wind speed at that site. As little as 1 mph at
ground level can make the difference between a system
that will pay for itself and one that will not. And winds
can vary considerably between sites that are only a mile
or so apart. It is therefore highly important to determine
carefully the average wind speed for each individual
location.

Starting with a visual check, a good site is one where
treetops sway or a flag flies fully extended most of the
time. Deformed trees may also provide a clue; strong
continuous winds tend to reduce foliage on the side
toward the wind. Sites may benefit from irregularities in
the local terrain, such as narrow valleys that compress,
or rounded hill crests that speed up, wind flow. Old
residents, Forest Service personnel, and others who may
have observed local wind behavior are worth consulting.

For preliminary estimates, it may be enough to
measure and record wind speeds at eye level twice a day
for two or three weeks, using a simple hand-held
instrument that costs about $10. If the average of these

measurements is less than 8 mph and commercial power
is available, Enertech advises you to go no further; the
site is probably not satisfactory. Other manufacturers
may suggest different minimum wind speeds. If the site
appears to be promising, the next step is to install an
anemometer, a recording device to measure and record
wind speed over a period of several months or even a year.
The resulting data may be compared with the records of
public or private weather stations near you. The U.S.
Department of Commerce, National Climatic Center,
Federal Building, Asheville, North Carolina 28801,
issues two publications: “Local Climatological Data,”
which is inexpensive and includes monthly average and
wind speeds for a current year; and “Airport
Climatological Summary,” which is more detailed and
technical and covers a longer period. The first
publication is prepared for about 290 stations, the second
for about 160. One of these stations might be near enough
to your site to provide helpful data. (When looking at
these summaries, be sure to note the height of the
recording instrument above the ground.) One great value
of a comparison with historical records is that you can
judge the effect of seasonal variations, which do not
change much from year to year. For example, if your
measurements are made in summer, you may see that
you can predict a higher year-round average by taking
into account the windier winter months.

Choosing tower height and type

One purpose of the tower or pole is to raise the wind
machine above and away from turbulence, which may
damage it, and from “wind shadow,” caused by nearby
trees or buildings. A site on a hill doesn’t necessarily
lessen the need for a high tower. (See drawing.) Some
authorities suggest that both turbulence and wind
shadow can be avoided by erecting a tower that is at least
30 feet higher than any obstacle within 100 yards, or 40
feet high, whichever is greater. Others say the tower
should be at least 60 feet high.

Another purpose of the tower relates to wind speed.
Wind measurements at ground level can be misleading;
here winds are slowed by the drag of the earth’s surface
and by various obstacles. Wind speed generally increases
with height, and even though this increase may be only 4
or 5 mph, it is significant.

133

1. The Enertech windmill was being installed by a 50 ton crane

a. because that was what was available

b. due to its massive weight

c. which also dragged the windmill from the manufacturer to the buyer

d. and dropped onto a 70 foot silo-type pedestal

2. The Enertech 1500 produces alternating current

a. on windless days, otherwise direct current

b. that flows indirectly into the electric circuits

c. which a generator transforms to AC

d. that is identical to power supplied for your home

3. Northeast Utilities was installing the windmill

a. as part of their Energy Alternatives services

b. as part of an Energy Alternatives experiment

c. because private contractors can’t profit on such jobs

d. to keep electricity flowing during utility power failures

4. Henry Clews’ first windmill prototypes

a. could not compete with utility rates

b. were received with little interest or inquiry from the public

c. were made while he worked for the Xerox Corporation

d. became wildfire financial successes

5. Traditional wind machines are not synchronous with utility power because

a. as wind speed varies they turn out current with varying voltage and frequency

b. they depend on steady wind speeds and are limited to specific areas

c. DC watts can never be transformed for AC appliances

d. the energy produced is too varied and unreliable

6. Henry Clews invented a generator that

a. transforms DC to AC inexpensively

b. can be plugged into a wall outlet

c. effectively stores unused energy in ordinary batteries

d. can be manually “peddled” on non-windy days

7. When wind speeds get too high, the Enertech 1500

a. automatically turns off and self starts when desirable conditions recur

b. sends its blades into a progressive stall

c. should simply be unplugged

d. is able to store all the excess power via a specialized power train

8. If there is a utility outage, the Enertech 1500

a. can supply a home electricity until normal power is resumed

b. can only regenerate stored kilowatts

c. will continue as long as winds remain above 8 mph

d. electricity production ceases to safeguard utility linemen

9. Given average windspeeds of 12 mph, the Enertech is designed to produce how many kWh a month?

a. 370

b. 1.5

c. 22

d. 12

134

10. Windmills are well suited for

a. windy areas where utilities are high in cost

b. industries where electrical consumption is high

c. anywhere, because costs are so low

d. densely populated areas where the public utilities are overtaxed

SUCCESS LOG TIMED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(10 points per correct answer)

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Techniques section.

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

First and Last

TECHNIQUES Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. You’ve practiced skimming for key words and phrases. And for the general idea of some short and some
longer selections. In this lesson you’ll use your skimming techniques to quickly grasp additional information.

Instead of trying to determine just the theme of the article, you’ll be trying to rapidly detect the main points in in¬
dividual paragraphs. A clue: The main point, or topic sentence, of a paragraph is often made in the first or the last
sentence. But whether or not the topic sentence introduces a subject or summarizes a subject, it is the one sentence in the
paragraph that includes the ideas in the other sentences. The other sentences usually contain related or supporting
details.

Look at paragraphs a and b. In each paragraph the topic sentence is in boldface type. Note how the other sentences pre¬
sent details that relate to the main idea expressed in the boldface sentence.

Excerpt from “Getting Along with Your 1973 Car,”
Better Homes and Gardens , May 1973, © Meredith Corporation, 1973.

SEVERAL NEW FEATURES PROVIDE SOME
PROTECTION FROM AUTO THEFT. On many cars
the hood release is now located inside the car. Steering
column and transmission lock in place when the ignition
is turned off, making steering (and towing) impossible.
At extra cost, optional theft alarms raise a hue and cry
against illegal entry, a good investment.

135

Hollister, George E. “With Legs Like These . . . Who Needs Wings?”

National Wildlife , August, 1973, p. 13.

He’s half tail and half feet. The rest of him is head and
beak. When he runs, he moves on blurring wheels. He can
turn on a dime and leave change. He doesn’t need to fly
because he can run faster. He kicks dirt in a snake’s face,
and then eats the snake. He chases lizards, and watches
hawks with an eye . . . HE’S AN ODD BIRD, BUT A
REAL ONE — THE ROADRUNNER.

The simple diagram next to each paragraph can serve as an aid in remembering these two types of paragraph organiza¬
tion. The base of the triangle represents the topic sentence and the apex represents the supporting details.

While most readers prefer reading well-structured paragraphs, we all know that many paragraphs simply cannot be
‘‘dissected.” That is, they may contain no structure or be so complex that the structure is not evident. When you are
searching for topic sentences, don’t become too frustrated, if you can’t locate a good “overall statement.”

Remember: While many paragraphs will have a first or last sentence that states the main idea, others may have no one
general statement (such as, a list of details), a topic sentence in the middle of the paragraph, or even have two topic
sentences. Your goal is to identify the main message of each paragraph, as you skim it, so that you have several complete
thoughts at the end of an article. Then you can integrate the separate thoughts into one descriptive statement about the
entire selection.

1. Practice picking out the topic sentence of a paragraph by skimming {don't slow down and read) paragraphs c - g
below. Then underline the topic sentence in each one. If you don’t think a paragraph has a general statement, just
mark it with an x. Check yourself with the Answer Key.

Marvin B. Sussman, “Coping With Modern Society”
Wisconsin State Journal October 26, 1980, Sec. 5, p. 6

On their surface bureaucracies are impersonal and
rational. They are governed by rules, and are thus
presumably fair and immune to personal influence. They
are, ideally, systems designed to permit easy social
exchange among strangers in a world that is too large
and complex for exchange to be governed solely by
kinship, friendship, and other informal, personal
relationships. But the words ‘’bureaucracy” and
“bureaucratic” have come to connote an inefficient, rule-
bound, maze-like system that obstructs rather than
facilitates obtaining services.

I. William Berry, “Overload, Is Better Worse?”

Ski Nov. 1980, p. 117

Down we came into the funnel, the crowd thickening at
every intersection like a river gathering speed as the ice
thaws in spring. Patrollers had the control fences in
place, a maze of blue net to turn the torrent, but some of
the novices had trouble negotiating the narrow entrances
while the fast-Eddies hit them like GS gates. Then
through those checkpoints and onto the shallow, narrow
runout, bombers at 30 mph and snowplowers at 2 mph
and short-swingers looking for the high ground. A brush
here, a nudge there, and elbow now and again — but none
of our group went down. We had survived the gantlet —
and the brew was our reward.

136

When Suzy reads, she usually tries to figure out the
meaning of new words by studying the context in which
they appear — looking at the preceding and following
sentences. Peter always checks out a new word in the
dictionary and notes the root of it. The root is the most
basic part and helps him remember the word,
understand it more thoroughly, and often learn about a
whole new “family” of words at the same time. Jean
invariably studies the prefixes (beginnings) and suffixes
(endings) of new words. She can sometimes guess at the
whole meaning of a word, once she has determined what
part of it means. One of Johnny’s reading habits is to use
new words right away — several times — once he as
acquired their meaning. He figures they are more likely
to stick with him if he becomes accustomed to saying
them. What do these students all have in common? They
are interested in improving their vocabulary and have
found these techniques helpful. They have realized that
learning new words is not difficult and that practicing
one or two new reading habits easily paves the way.
Maybe the next step for each student is to practice more
than just one or two of the vocabulary improvement
techniques.

Marvin B. Sussman, “Coping With Modern Society“
Wisconsin State Journal , October 16, 1980, Sec. 5, p. 6

Families today, as in yesteryear, are the primary care
system for their members, from the newborn to the
elderly. Although organizations and institutions provide
specialized services such as health care, relatively few
persons grow up or live out their lives in institutions.
Even among those older than 65, only about 5 percent are
in long-term care facilities such as nursing homes or
homes for the aged.

9 -

On the main island winds, gusting to 80 mph, roared
through the coastal towns for 24 hours. Torrents of rain
and golf-ball sized hail descended during the first night
and into the next morning, leaving flooded conditions
everywhere. The temperature plummeted 30°, to a
record low. No lifelong inhabitant had ever felt such cold.
High tides and unsanitary conditions followed for weeks
after the storm’s passing.

2. Now practice picking out the topic sentences in an entire article. Skim the following selections. Look for the general
statements at the beginning and end of the paragraphs. Then answer the questions at the end of each selection by
writing either a short answer or True/False in the space provided. The questions ask about the main points contained
in either the beginning or end of the paragraphs.

For questions you can’t answer, go back to the selection and scan it to find the missing detail. Don’t waste time
reading the entire selection.

Excerpt from “Could You Be Color Blind Better Homes and Gardens , May, 1973,

Is there any doubt in your mind about what is
meant by a “red stoplight” or “yellow cab”? Do you
have much trouble selecting matching pieces of
clothing, or tastefully decorating a room? If not,
you’re probably batting a thousand on your
color-vision perception. But such color-coded words
and actions don’t mean a thing to over ten million
people in this country, because they’re color blind—
that is, they have difficulty seeing some colors.

Color blindness (called color vision deficiency by
doctors) poses only minor difficulties and no real
problem to the vast majority of people with the
disorder, primarily because relatively few people are
totally color blind. By making some adjustments in

lifestyle, they find their various color-vision defects
relatively easy to live with. Understanding color
blindness is another thing, however, since just how we
human beings see color is not yet totally understood.
What causes color blindness?

Most people who are color blind are born that way.
The commonest type of color-vision deficiency,
red-green blindness, is believed to be
inherited—transmitted as a sex-linked characteristic.
For example, a mother with defective color vision
will pass on color blindness to all her sons, regardless
of her mate, and all her daughters will have one
defective gene. . . . Total color blindness, when all
colors appear as gray, is also congenital—but it’s

137

extremely rare.

Acquired color blindness, yellow-blue blindness,
also is very rare and usually is a symptom of a more
serious illness. Lead poisoning, for example, can cause
changes in color vision, as can certain vitamin
deficiencies.

Who is most likely to have color vision problems?

Statistical evidence (and the genetic patterns)
reveal that men are overwhelmingly more apt to be
color blind than women. In our total population
about eight percent of men have color vision
problems and less than one percent of women. These

Why do some fail to see color?

Wake up in a darkened room and look around. You
readily realize that strong light is the essential factor
for color perception. Without it, there is no color. In
our eyes, the short, blunt, flask-shaped cones of the
retina are our bright-light receivers and, thus, our
color receivers. These cones are believed to convert
light energy into nervous impulses which are sent to
the brain.

We see color, then, as a result of a physiological
mechanism within the eye and a psychological
process in the brain. When a person has a color-vision
deficiency, the absence or malfunction of the retinal
cones is responsible. Persons who are red-blind or
green-blind use only two colors (yellow and blue) to
perceive all color. The result is confusion in red,

data are confirmed by a national health survey on
color-vision deficiencies in children six to 11 years
old which shows that of the 3.8 percent of affected
children, 6.95 percent were boys and only 0.53
percent were girls.

How are color vision deficiencies detected?

Amazingly, many color-blind people don’t realize
they have any difficulty at all. It is, however, possible
to test for color blindness, although it requires a
professional to interpret the test results, since color
vision defects may be mild, moderate, or severe

blue-green, and gray.

What can be done about color blindness?

Common, inherited color blindness does not have a
“cure,” nor can it be corrected. It has to be lived
with, and early detection and education along that
line can make color vision defects virtually no
problem at all.

Also, children with color deficiencies should
recognize that certain careers where a keen sense of
color is imperative are not good choices for them.

To find out if you, or your child, have a color
vision deficiency, it’s important to have your eyes
checked specifically for color-vision defects,
especially if there is color blindness in your family.
And be aware that color-vision testing may not be a
part of routine eye examinations.

1. Are very many people affected by color blindness or is it fairly rare?

2. Do doctors know how humans see color? _

3. What is the cause for most color blindness? _

4. Who is most likely afflicted?_

5. Do color blind people suffer greatly? _

6. What is necessary for color perception?_

7. What can you do for inherited color blindness?_

8. Is color blindness always checked for in routine eye examinations?

Reprinted with permission from Changing Times Magazine,
® 1980 Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc., July, 1980

Shortly after 5 a.m. on July 23,1971, several occupants
of 12th-floor rooms in a 17-story motel in New Orleans
smelled smoke.

They called the front desk. Two building guards
hurried to the floor and traced the smoke to room 1218,
which was unoccupied. Neither guard had a fire
extinguisher. One stayed to break open the door.

The other guard began evacuating guests from their
rooms. He helped two groups to escape on the elevator
before smoke and heat forced him to leave the floor. He
couldn’t find the guard who had gone there with him.

At 5:26 a.m. the occupants of room 1214 called the fire
department. The fire fighters arrived to find a fiercely
blazing fire, but they were able to lead the remaining
guests to safety and extinguish the flames quickly.

138

Only then did they find the body of the missing guard,
on the floor near room 1218. In the corridor near the
elevator were more bodies — a doctor, his wife and their
two small children. Lying in the elevator doorway was a
woman, still alive. Her grown son was on the elevator
floor. She died at the hospital, a victim of smoke
inhalation, but her son survived.

Later the son told how he and his mother along with the
doctor and his family, after they had been alerted to the
fire, had taken the elevator down from the 15th floor.
When it reached the 12th, the doors opened
automatically, and smoke and heat poured in.

The doctor and his family had started down the smoke-
filled corridor toward the exit stairway. The woman had
collapsed as she started to leave the elevator. Then her
son, too, was overcome and collapsed.

All six who died that day could have lived. But the story
of their deaths could save other lives, perhaps yours.
Wherever you may be — hotel, motel, apartment house,
high-rise office building, department store, hospital,
nursing home, public building, your own house — the
basic principles of fire safety apply. But you must know
them beforehand. It’s too late when fire strikes.

If you live or work in a high-rise building, know the
location of the fire exits on your floor and fix firmly in
your mind that you should use the fire stairs, not the
elevator, if you hear an alarm.

In that motel fire, for example, the fire exit was beside
the door to the room in which the doctor and his family
were staying. Instead of taking the escape route at hand,
they walked 135 feet to the elevator. The mother and her
son walked 100 feet to the elevator instead of 35 feet to the
fire exit.

Learn the sound of the fire alarm in your building.
Some alarms sound like the elevator alarm bell or make a
whooping noise. Encourage the building management to
draw up a sensible plan for dealing with a fire emergency
so that tenants and staff alike know what to do. The local
fire department will be glad to help.

The multistory building occupied by the National Fire
Protection Association in downtown Boston is, as you
might expect, safer than many. It has a full sprinkler
system, a safety factor that the association regards
highly because there has never been a report of multiple
deaths in any building with a complete and operating
sprinkler system. Even so, NFPA frequently stages
unscheduled fire drills.

When you enter a public place, such as a department
store, restaurant or hotel meeting room, make it a habit
to note the exits. If you find any that are barred, chained
or otherwise locked — a fairly common and extremely
dangerous practice — object strongly to the
management. If nothing is done about it, leave.

If the furnishings or decorations look particularly

hazardous for the kind of gathering that is taking place,
you face a decision about whether to stay. The Cocoanut
Grove nightclub fire, which killed 492 people in 1942 in
Boston — by far the worst fire diaster in this country in
half a century — had three things in common with the
1977 Beverly Hills Supper Club fire in Kentucky and
several other fatal restaurant-nightclub fires: The
buildings had inadequate exits, combustible interior
finishes and no sprinkler systems. Making matters
worse, many were overcrowded.

If you’re in a hotel or motel, survey your surroundings
as you check in. Sprinkler heads in corridor ceilings are
reassuring signs. If there are none, look for smoke
detectors, You could carry a portable one with you.

As soon as you get to your room, look for the way out.
Even if you’re tired and want to relax, go back into the
corridor to see where the fire exit is. Have everyone with
you do the same.

Look for any obstructions, such as ice or vending
machines, that might block your path. It’s a good idea to
open the fire door to the stairwell. Sometimes there is a
second door inside. Know about it in advance and you
won’t panic when coming upon it in an emergency.

Count the number of doors on your way back to your
room. If you are crawling along the floor under a heavy
pall of smoke, the exit sign could be difficult or
impossible to see.

Make sure you can open the window in your room. If it
can’t be opened, you’ll have to think about whether you
can break it and get out safely or whether you want to get
a different room. If the door locks from the inside with
the key, leave the key in the lock. Then you’ll know
exactly where it is, even in the dark. Besides, you’ll keep
any thief from entering your room with a master key
while you sleep.

Every second counts

Take fire seriously. Don’t stall. A mild smoke haze can
turn into a dense, killing cloud in moments. And it is
usually smoke, not fire, that kills.

If you smell smoke in a public place, alert an employee
to sound the alarm and leave promptly yourself. If you
hear an alarm, get out. Don’t assume that it’s a false
alarm simply because you don’t see fire or smell smoke.

Take little fires in your home or office building
seriously, too. Smother a wastebasket fire immediately
with anything that’s handy — a blanket, pillow, coat,
anything. Don’t try to carry the flaming basket outside:
You could set the entire room or corridor on fire. And
don’t go for water to put out the blaze: In the few minutes
you are gone, superheated air could fill the room and
virtually explode as you reenter, setting everything
ablaze.

The same principle applies to a kitchen fire. If a pan
flares up, smother it with a lid, a towel, anything. Don’t

139

try to pick it up and don’t throw water on it. If you have a
fire extinguisher at hand, stand back at least ten or 12
feet before you turn it on. The typical dry-chemical
extinguisher works by fogging the fire. Stand too close
and the force of the blast could blow the pan off the stove
and spread fire to the rest of the room. Remember to turn
off the burner.

When you leave a room in which there’s a fire, shut the
door and don't go back. Opening the door even moments
later could unleash a violent tongue of flame that almost
certainly will kill you. By leaving the door shut until fire
fighters arrive, you’ll confine the damage. They know
how to open a door into a fire without endangering
themselves.

If you’re awakened in the night by the telephone, by
someone banging on the door or by the smell of smoke,
find out what’s going on before you go back to sleep.

When there’s smoke in the air or you hear an alarm, get
out of bed and stay low to the floor. If smoke is coming
into your room, it will rise to the ceiling. People have died
walking through smoke when they could have survived
by crawling. Even a seemingly mild haze may contain
chemicals or gases that can knock you unconscious in
seconds.

Before opening the door, feel the door and the knob for
heat. If there is none, brace your shoulder against the
door and open it slowly. If the corridor appears clear, go
quickly to the fire exit and down the stairs. When there is
smoke, stay low and close to the wall. You’ll be able to
breathe more easily and you’ll be less likely to become
disoriented.

If you aren’t physically able to walk down the stairs,
you should be able to survive a fire simply by staying in
the fire stairwell. When 16 people died and hundreds of
others were injured in a fire that destroyed a 31-story
office building in Sao Paulo, Brazil, hundreds more who
had remained in the building’s fire stairwells emerged
safely.

Do not open a door it if is hot or if smoke is coming in
around it. Stuff bedspreads, towels or rugs against the
door to keep out smoke.

If you’re on the first floor, you may want to go out the
window if you can do it without injuring yourself. If
you’re on the second story or above, don’t try jumping.
You’re far safer where you are. Many people have
jumped to injury or death when they could have escaped
unscathed by staying put.

Open a window — at both the top and the bottom if
possible — to ventilate the room. If you can’t open the
window, break it with a chair and lay a folded blanket
over the opening to minimize the possibility of gashing
yourself. To alert fire fighters to your presence, hang a
sheet or bedspread out the window.

Fire experts say you can survive inside a room as long
as 45 minutes with a fire raging outside the door — more
than enough time for help to reach you. But if the smoke
gets heavy, lie down on the floor or put your head out the
window. You can also wrap a wet towel around your face
to help filter out smoke.

Staying safe involves just a few precautions and a little
forethought. If that seems too much to ask of yourself,
consider the alternative.

Answer the questions according to whether the statement is something the author believes or has suggested.

9. The six people who died in the 1971 New Orleans fire never had a chance to escape. _

10. When you hear an alarm, take the quickest route — whatever it is-

11. Make it a habit to always check out the fire fighting equipment in a public building. _

12. Carrying a smoke detector with you is one way to feel reassured. _

13. In a group, one person should be specifically assigned to check out the fire exits and report back._

14. Walking along your escape route in advance is important._

15. Memorize how the exit signs look, so you can spot them quickly in case of fire. _

16. Leaving your key in the inside lock is a good idea._

17. The cause of death is often smoke, rather than fire. _

18. When you hear an alarm, check it out quickly to see if it’s for real._

19. When you leave a fire in a room, shut the door, and then check on it later if you are able._

20. When you are awakened in bed, get up and run out as fast as you can. _

21. A chemical in a small haze can cause unconsciousness. _

22. Avoid remaining too long in fire stairwells. _

23. Jumping is a good alternative when trying to find a quick exit. _

24. It’s possible to survive a nearby raging fire by staying inside your room for a short time. _

140

“Look out for those Home Improvement Frauds.” Reprinted from Better Homes
and Gardens , May, 1973. © Meredith Corporation, 1973. All rights reserved.

In Pennsylvania, two hundred homeowners were
recently defrauded by a roofing concern for a total of
over $42,000. An Oregon widow lost $51,000 to a
dishonest exterminating firm, and an elderly
Midwesterner paid $8,000 to criminals posing as
sewer inspectors. There’s also a large clan of itinerant
workmen, well known to the authorities, who move
quickly from state to state, keeping one jump ahead
of the law.

In contractor jargon, unethical contractors are
called “the blue suede shoe boys,” or “hit and run”
fly-by-night operators. The paving contractor who
offers to tar your driveway at an unheard-of low price,
then disappears before the first rain washes away the
“tar,” falls into this category. So does the repairman
who works out of his hat, takes your deposit, then
vanishes without a trace.

Even in those cases where the work is satisfactorily
completed, the unscrupulous racketeer may have fled
with your money, leaving you with unpaid
mechanics’ liens (bills of subcontractors).

Selling door to door is a time-honored American
tradition and it would be unfair to say that all
doorbell-ringing salesmen are crooks. In fact, one
prominent Midwestern roofing company boasts of
thousands of satisfied customers contracted door to
door. But every homeowner should be especially on
guard when dealing with unknown contractors.

Are you better protected today?

The vast majority of reliable contractor-business¬
men deplore the black eye given their reputation
by dishonest remodelers. Legitimate operators recently
have taken steps, in cooperation with consumer
protection and government agencies, to alert you to the
dangers of fraud and to assist in the policing of their
industry. However, the fact remains that complaints
about home improvement contractors received by the
Better Business Bureau in some areas of the country
represent as much as ten percent of all complaints. It’s
a matter or record that thousands of dollars are lost
by unwary consumers each year to home improvement
frauds.

Still, your rights are improving. From the
standpoint of consumer protection, you are in a
much safer position to proceed with your remodeling
plans than you would have been a decade ago. Here
are some important recent developments.

Consumer protection agencies have been formed at
every level of government, from the smallest
township to the federal level—all with protection of
your rights the first order of business. In not a few
agencies the director and his deputies have power of

arrest and prosecution.

Licensing of home improvement contractors is
becoming more common. Contractors and consumers
should welcome this practice, since it minimizes
credential requirements in the homeowner’s mind.

State and federal legislation is getting more
responsive to existing inequities of the law, such as
the “holder in due course” defense, which permitted
both bank and contractor to collect from you no
matter how poorly or incompletely the contractor
performed. Increasingly, judges are not allowing this
defense, and many regard existing legislation as
untenable. A federal law is expected within two years
to correct inequities of this policy.

A three-day recision law , or cancellation law,
provides a legal “out” for you under certain
circumstances within three days of signing the
contract. Usually the law applies when the loan
could involve the loss of your family home. This law
gives you time to check out the credentials of the
contractor—even after signing the contract. No longer
must you fear the consequences of your weakening
defenses against the persistent sales pitch.

Professional contractor groups are another
encouraging sign. A large number of ethical
remodelers in 50 to 75 cities across the country have
banded together, either in affiliation with national
associations or independently, and voluntarily
subscribe to a code of ethics, membership in the local
Better Business Bureau, and frequently to binding
arbitration clauses in their contracts. One such code
of ethics is that adhered to by local chapters of the
National Home Improvement Council. Each member
contractor of that Council promises to “observe the
highest standards of integrity, frankness and
responsibility in dealing with the public ... by
encouraging only those home improvement projects
which are structurally and economically sound ... by
making, in all advertising, only those statements
which are accurate and free of the capacity to mislead
or deceive the consumer ... by requiring all salesmen
to be accurate in their descriptions of products and
services ... by writing all contracts so that they are
unambiguous and fair to all parties concerned ... by
promptly fulfilling all contractural obligations . . .
and by performing all work in a manner compatible
with recognized standards of public health, safety and
applicable laws.”

Homeowners associations have been organized by
people to protect themselves from the dishonest
repairman. Some groups provide lists of approved
repairmen for hundreds of home needs.

141

How can you protect yourself?

Apart from the legal guarantees and organized help
to preserve your rights when dealing with a
contractor, there are many things you can do on your
own. For example, some homeowners completely
avoid the problem of selecting a contractor by using
an architect for their projects. He, in turn, selects and
supervises a contractor known to him. The average
architect’s fee on a remodeling job is 18 percent of
the contract price. He will most likely request five
percent of his fee as an advance retainer. Actually,
there is a range of commission fees from 14 percent
to 20 percent. As the contract price increases, the
architect’s percentage decreases.

In addition to relieving you of the contractor
problem, the architect, with his know-how, will
probably save you more than his fee. Also, your
project will be professionally designed, afid probably
more attractive.

To select an architect, check with friends and
associates. It won’t be difficult to find out from them
whether or not they’ve been satisfied with a certain
architect. Also, most medium-sized cities have local
chapters of the American Institute of Architects,
which will provide you with a membership list.

If you want to select your own contractor, follow
these rules:

• Call your local Better Business Bureau. They’ll be
able to tell you if the contractor is a member of their
Bureau. If he is, this is an excellent recommendation.
In any event, they will be able to tell you if they have
a complaint file on him.

• You should be encouraged if the contractor
displays—in his newspaper or telephone book
advertising—his affiliation with a professional trade
association . . . such as the National Home
Improvement Council, the National Association of
Home Builders, or the American Institute of Kitchen
Dealers.

• Ask the contractor for bank references, and the
names of at least two satisfied customers. He
shouldn’t resent your wanting to see one or two
completed jobs, either.

• Plan to get competitive bids from at least three or
four contractors. Give each contractor identical
plans and specifications. Be sure each contractor is
aware you are getting bids from others.

• Check to see that the contractor has an established
place of business in your area. It’s another good
sign if he has been there for a reasonably long period
of time.

How to spot phony door-to-door contractors

What should you look for when the doorbell rings
and an individual presents himself to you as a
legitimate home improvement contractor? For one
thing, your suspicions should be aroused immediately

if his car or pickup truck bears out-of-state license
plates. Be especially wary of the quick—and generally
low—estimate on any job, as well as pressure for the
order and a cash deposit. Don’t be persuaded by any
excuses about lack of credentials, bank references,
and customer referrals.

Above all, don’t be stampeded into the trap. Take
your time, remain calm (this applies equally in
dealing with a reliable contractor), and ask the
necessary questions to elicit proof of his identity. As
with any business transaction, it’s important to know
whom you’re dealing with.

How to write a good contract

A reputable home improvement contractor does
not give you a proposal on the back of an envelope.
He prepares a comprehensive set of material and labor
specifications; carefully estimates costs; and offers
you a detailed proposal, at a package price, covering
every aspect of the job, from removal of existing
materials to thorough cleanup after the repairs,
changes, or additions have been made. If your
contract is for a major job ($3,000 to $10,000 and
up), be sure your lawyer sees the contract before you
sign. Even if you do sign right away, remember that
the law under certain circumstances gives you a full
72-hour period from the date of signing to get out of
the contract.

Your contract should contain these provisions:

• To prevent mechanics’ liens on your house, the
contract should contain a provision that final
payment is not due until the contractor supplies an
affidavit that all material suppliers, labor and/or
subcontractors have been paid.

• The contractor agrees to maintain required
insurance coverage, including workmen’s
compensation policies.

• All materials should be specified by brand name
and model number, with substitutions only by
mutual agreement.

• The contractor will agree to be responsible for a
complete clean-up of the premises, including removal
of all waste materials.

• He guarantees his work for at least one year.

• He secures any permits that are required.

• Dating and initialing of plans and specifications
should be made an integral part of the contract, with
no changes except by mutual agreement.

• The work you plan to do yourself should be
specifically excluded from the contracted work.

• Satisfactory completion of work should be the
basis for cash payments in installments that match
completion of the work. Usually, ten percent of the
total payment should be withheld pending final
approval of the job by the homeowner.

• As required by federal law, the contract should
clearly state the exact financing charges in dollars and

142

in annual percentage rates. This is the same federal
law which provides a three-day recision period, during
which you may check the contract and financing
charges with your attorney or bank.

• An excellent clause in a contract with a home
improvement contractor is one which provides for
binding arbitration. This means that instead of going
to court, you and the contractor agree to settle your
differences through the selection of a neutral party.
In many areas, the Better Business Bureau provides a
free arbitration service. The American Arbitration
Association also provides one for a fee, which
depends on the amount in dispute.

How can you avoid being overcharged for the work?

At the initial stage, both you and the contractor
can talk only of approximate costs. Naturally
there will be varying costs for different materials
used. The size of the space and the variety of work
that can be done under any given heading affects
your pocketbook. These sample figures, provided
by the National Home Improvement Council, are
intended as a loose rule of thumb:

Remodeling a kitchen $2,500 to $6,000

Modernizing a bath $1,500 to $4,000

Room additions $20 to $40 per square foot

Finishing basement/attic $1,000 to $4,500

Re-siding $75 to $150 per 100 square feet

Adding an outdoor

swimming pool $5,000 to $9,000

If you follow the advice given on getting bids from
at least three contractors, you’ll be way ahead of the
game. Also, if your architect and contractor realize
that you are working on a budget, there’s a tendency
to keep bids and costs in line.

A checklist to protect yourself

1. Only employ a contractor with an established
place of business, preferably in your area.

2. Be sure he has adequate financial references.

3. Get references from him of satisfied customers
for whom he has done remodeling work in the area,
and check on them personally by phone or visit.

4. Use your local Better Business Bureau as a
reference.

5. Observe how precisely he sizes up your
proposed project. Note his suggestions and discuss
them thoroughly with him.

6. Don’t be rushed. He has time, and so do you.

7. Regarding major projects especially, be sure to
have written agreements for plans and specifications.

8. Don’t “shop” with the contractor on prices of
materials and labor rates after he has submitted his
bid and it has been accepted.

9. Insist that you okay all plans before work
begins.

10. Insist, also, that the contractor provides a
Certification of Insurance covering Workmen’s
Compensation, property damage, and personal
liability.

11. Specify all materials by brand name and
quantity.

25. A roofing concern defrauded some people in Pennsylvania_

26. Most businessmen don’t care about the dishonest remodelers. _

27. The licensing of contractors has not yet caught on. _

28. No one has yet formed a protection agency against dishonest repairmen._

29. According to the article, there are steps you can take on your own to protect yourself. _

30. According to the article, affiliation with a professional trade association can be a good sign.

31. According to the article, there is little need to bother with bank references._

32. The article does not tell whether it is bad or good to be persuaded by a repairman. _

33. You should demand a written proposal from your home repair contractor. _

34. The article suggests a one-year guarantee on the work. _

35. The article suggests you might call the Better Business Bureau about your repairman. _

36. The article does not mention provisions that should be included in the contract. _

143

“Should You Take Your Dog on Vacation?” Reprinted from Better Homes and
Gardens , May, 1973. © Meredith Corporation, 1973. All rights reserved.

Before you decide to take a pet along on your
family vacation this year, decide whether or not
traveling with him really will be a vacation. In almost
every situation, separate vacations for family and pets
are more enjoyable for both.

Taking a dog on a vacation trip is practical only if
it is to be a camping vacation, and if the dog enjoys
such activities. Even then, most public camping areas
have restrictions against dogs running loose. This
means keeping your dog tied, or on a leash, at all
times.

If you will be staying with friends or relatives, bear
in mind that they may be too polite to let you know
your pet is not entirely welcome. If they have pets of
their own, clashes between the animals are a distinct
possibility. If they don’t have pets, it’s probably
because they prefer not to, and would probably prefer
not to have yours, either.

If your vacation is to be a sight-seeing trip and
you’ll be staying in motels and visiting points of
interest, a dog—even a well-loved and well-behaved
dog—is almost certain to cause problems.

Most vacations come during the summer months.
Dogs left in closed cars can die from excessive heat.
Dogs left in cars with windows open can jump out
and injure themselves or hang themselves on leashes
or collars, or get themselves run over. Dogs can
become lost, permanently, by escaping from the
family car in a strange town, while the owners are in
restaurants or souvenir shops.

Assuming none of these dire things happen, there
are lesser drawbacks. While some motels welcome
canine travelers (a booklet, “Touring with Towser,” is
available from TWT, Box 1007, Kankakee, Ill.
60901), many others don’t. Unless you’ve planned
your trip around motels that allow dogs, you may
have to drive on until you find one that does accept
them. And this may mean extra hours of driving after
you already have been behind the wheel too long.

Even if you manage to get your dog into a motel
room, you still have problems. He’ll need to be taken
out, usually late at night or early in the morning and,
after all, one of the luxuries of a vacation is not
having to get up to walk the dog. Often, pets who are
perfectly housebroken in their own homes forget
everything they know when confronted with the
scents of motel room carpeting.

Some families' reluctance to leave pets behind can
probably be summed up in one word:
anthropomorphism, the technical term for endowing
nonhuman objects or animals with human
characteristics. We imagine how we would feel if we
were being left at home or how we would hate being

locked up in a cage or a kennel run by strangers. The
canine mind simply doesn’t work that way.

A dog who is not accustomed to being separated
from his family will probably feel some apprehension
about his strange surroundings. It seldom lasts more
than a day. It is a rare dog or cat who doesn’t settle
into the new routine with an ease that would insult
some owners.

Where is the best place to leave your pet? Willing
relatives or friends may offer to pet-sit. In some cases
this is a workable solution, but often it is not, unless
your pet lives in a cage or an aquarium and requires
only food and water. For dogs and cats, it gets more
complicated. Pets can be destructive in strange
houses. They can be hard on rugs, on furniture, and
on friendships. Unless the foster home has a fenced
yard, dog-walking can become a nuisance, especially
to people who may not be motivated by love for the
animal, but only by friendship for you. The
household may already contain a pet or two which
would cause more complications.

Thoughtful pet owners prefer to pay for
professional care for their pets, rather than imposing
on friends or neighbors. Many large cities have
in-home pet care services. For a fee, usually higher
than boarding kennels charge, a qualified pet-sitter
will come to your home once or twice a day to care
for your pets. In some cases the pet-sitter will move
into your home and devote his full time to pampering
your dog or cat. This service is quite expensive.

Some veterinary hospitals offer boarding services,
but this is not always an ideal solution. Hospitals are
for sick animals, and in even the most sanitary and
most thoroughly disinfected pet hospitals, there is
always a chance of infection. Most small animal
hospitals are located in urban areas where outdoor
runs are skimpy, if they exist at all. The facilities
simply aren’t designed for long-term visits. In
addition, most ^veterinarians are busy with their
medical practices and would rather not be bothered
with healthy canine boarders.

The best bet is a boarding kennel. A good boarding
kennel, designed for maximum comfort of its paying
guests and run by competent people, offers the best
in facilities at a moderate cost. Boarding kennels can
be found, in any area, through veterinarians, local dog
breeders, or the yellow pages. Many have facilities for
both dogs and cats.

Boarding charges may range from one to ten
dollars a day, depending on the size of the dog and
luxury of the facilities. Two dollars a day is about
average for a small or medium-sized dog, although
prices may be higher in metropolitan areas. Most

144

kennels charge substantially more for very large
breeds.

It is an excellent idea to do your kennel-shopping
well in advance of your trip. Visit several kennels, and
ask to see their facilities. Reputable kennel owners
won’t mind; they will appreciate the intelligence of
your approach and, if their kennels are well run, they
will welcome comparison with competitors.

Carry a mental checklist with you. Is the place
clean or does it have a noticeable kennel smell,
multiple dog stools in the runs, and clouds of flies?

Is there more than one dog to a run? Unless two
dogs belonging to the same owner are being kenneled
together at the request of the owner, it is an
extremely bad practice to double up the dogs.

Does every run have at least partial shade? This is
especially important for dogs of the snub-nosed
breeds, such as Pekingese and boxers. They suffer

more acutely from the heat than other breeds. And is
water available at all times?

Are gate latches escape-proof? Are run fences high
enough? Is there some sort of auxiliary fencing
around the premises, so that, if a dog should get out
of its run, it will still be confined to the grounds?

If your dog is overweight and you are too
softhearted to put him on a diet at home, ask the
kennel owner to restrict your pet’s diet. Much can be
accomplished in two weeks’ time, and someone else
can be the heavy in your dog’s eyes.

Many boarding kennels also offer grooming
services. This might be a good time for the trimming,
matt-removing, or flea bath that you’ve been too
busy for.

Everything considered, touring with the family pet
is a doubtful pleasure at best. Instead, enjoy your
vacation without him . . . and let him enjoy his.

37. Does the author feel most pets should go on the family vacation? _

38. What kind of vacation is most practical with a dog? _

39. According to the article, would most friends or relatives be likely to tell you if your pet were not welcome?.

40. What does the author say could possibly happen to a dog left in the car? _

41. Do most motels generally welcome pets? _

42. What word sums up why people don’t want to leave their pets behind?_

43. What is one problem mentioned concerning having a friend take in your dog while you are gone?_

44. Are veterinary hospitals the safest place to board your dog? _

45. How does the author feel about doubling up dogs in a run? _

“Family Sport Vehicles: Do you have the right insurance?” Reprinted from Better
Homes and Gardens , May, 1973. © Meredith Corporation, 1973. All rights reserved.

Do you have your eye on a runabout or a yacht?
A motor home? Travel trailer? Or maybe something
less conventional—like a motorcycle, dune buggy, or
an all terrain vehicle (sometimes called an “ATV”)?

With expected sales of more than one million
recreational vehicles this year, chances are pretty
good you’ll spend at least part of your summer
vacation in one. Whether you buy a dune buggy, rent
a boat, or just take a nice, leisurely vacation in the
family car towing a camper, you’ll probably need
extra insurance.

There are two basic kinds of insurance to know
about:

• Liability insurance provides coverage for various
types of legal liability you may incur. If a friend
injures himself on board your boat, for example, he

could sue you for “pain and suffering” and loss of
income, as well as for medical costs. Car owners
normally satisfy the various state financial
responsibility laws by purchasing liability insurance,
but it’s a good idea to have it for other vehicles as
well.

• Comprehensive and physical damage insurance
covers your vehicle and some or all of its accessories
against collision, fire and theft, and most other
so-called “normal hazards.” For a boat, this might
include everything from loss of life jackets to towing
charges or damage repairs, depending upon the policy
you buy.

Several companies offer policies in some or all of
the following areas. Don’t limit your inquiries to the
major general-purpose companies; there are a number

145

of excellent specialty insurance outfits, too. Prices
and plans cited below are merely typical; you may
find some variation according to company, policy,
and where you live. Also ask about recreational
package policies, available with companies in some
states.

Boats

A good policy covers you for liability while your
boat is in use, whether for*motoring or for sports
such as water-skiing or aqua-planing. Policies vary
according to the size of the boat and the seasonal
exposure they are subject to in their geographic area.
Premiums vary, too, depending upon size and value of
the boat and its motor, value of accessories, principal
docking or storage location, and extent of coverage.
Deductibles may lessen your premium considerably.
Sometimes deductibles are reduced automatically at
no additional cost after a number of claim-free years.

You’ll find that classifications of boats vary from
company to company. Typically, open cockpit boats
with in- or out-board motors less than a certain length
will be called runabouts. If you own a runabout
worth about $2,500 and live in the Great Lakes area,
you would pay around $89 for a package policy
including $100,000 liability, $1,000 medical and
physical damage with a $25 deductible.

Closed-cockpit cruisers more than a certain length
(again, according to individual company
specifications) and most sailboats classify as yachts.
They cost more to insure, so it is worth your while to
find out how several different companies draw the
lines between classifications.

If you own a yacht worth $12,000 and live in the
Great Lakes area, the base rate of your premium
would be about $220. Such a policy would include
$100,000 liability, $1,000 medical and
$100-deductible physical-damage coverage. With
some companies, you may be able to earn premium
credits. For example, one company will give you a
ten percent premium reduction if your boat is diesel
rather than gas powered, 15 percent off if your boat
is a sailboat, five percent if you have Coast Guard
training, and from 2-1/2 percent to five percent for
electronic equipment. Total possible reductions
amount to about 35 percent of the original premium.

Liability insurance is available for $25,000,
$50,000, $100,000, and $300,000, with $1,000
medical payments inclusive. You can get additional
medical coverage up to $5,000 for boat-related
injuries. Some companies provide you and your
immediate family with special coverage for loss of life
or limb.

Motor homes and truck campers

Policies vary to some extent among companies and
geographic areas, but prices and terms generally are
competitive. If you own a motor home worth

$10,000 and live in Western Michigan, for example, a
policy might cost you about $294 a year. This
includes bodily injury liability of $100,000 per
person per accident, and $300,000 per accident;
property damage liability of $25,000; uninsured
motorist protection; and $2,000 medical coverage.
This policy would include comprehensive coverage
with a $25 deductible and collision coverage up to
the cash value of your vehicle, minus a $100
deductible. Some companies provide additional
benefits such as towing charges and an emergency
expense allowance if, for example, you have to check
into a motel while waiting for repairs.

Comprehensive insurance covers your motor home
against fire, flood, hailstorms, freak accidents, and
theft. Interior portions of the motor home are usually
covered, but personal belongings may not be. For an
extra premium these may be protected too. Collision
coverage is available with $50, $100, and $250
deductibles.

Travel trailers

In many cases, your auto policy covers you for
liability only, and then only when your trailer
actually is attached to the car. You may need special
insurance. Coverage for a trailer worth about $3,000
would cost about $86 a year in most states. This
includes comprehensive coverage without a
deductible, and collision coverage with a $50 or $100
deductible. You also can get coverage for emergency
expenses up to $150 per need, as well as towing and
labor charges.

Where state law allows, you may buy accidental
death and dismemberment policies, plus special
vacation liability coverage for your trailer when it is
detached from the car. Incidentally, the small,
fold-down camping trailers sometimes are covered
under your auto liability and homeowners policies
when the trailer is hooked up to your car. Be sure to
check before you buy more insurance.

Motorcycles

Most states require a minimum of liability
insurance, both bodily injury and property damage.
You may buy up to $50,000 for each person,
$100,000 each accident bodily injury protection, and
$15,000 property damage coverage quite readily.
Higher coverage is wise if you can get it.

Considering the special hazards that most cyclists
face, check into policies designed especially for
motorcycles. For example, you may get special guest
passenger liability insurance to protect you if a friend
riding on your cycle is injured in an accident in which
you are at fault. Comprehensive coverage protects
against fire, theft, vandalism—usually after a $50 or
$100 deductible. You also may have your bike trailer
covered on the same policy. And look into medical
expenses coverage thoroughly, too.

146

Some companies institute higher deductibles if you
use your bike in organized competition; others won’t
insure you. Sometimes you can pay reduced
premiums if you store your bike in the winter. You
also may pay less for older bikes simply because they
are worth less. Often you can buy policies covering
more than one bike.

Premiums vary from state to state. If you live in
Pennsylvania, for instance, and own a 350 cc. bike,
you’d pay around $116 a year for an insurance
package including liability, comprehensive, and
collision. Liability coverage would be $10,000 per
person per accident, $20,000 per accident, and
$5,000 property damage (called a 10/20/5 package).
If you plan to store your bike for three months
during the year, you may buy identical coverage for
about $102. During the storage period, collision and
liability coverage are suspended, although your bike is
still covered for such things as fire and theft. And you
may get ten percent off for a model more than a year
old.

For a minibike (defined by many companies as a
motorcycle not exceeding five horsepower or
weighing more than 150 pounds without passengers),
you would pay about $20 for a complete 10/20/5
package covering you for 12 months.

All terrain vehicles (ATVs)

Policies for all terrain vehicles, air cushion vehicles,
and snowmobiles are all basically the same, although
some states now have special laws governing
snowmobiles. Again, you’ll want liability and physical
damage coverage. A good policy also should cover
damage done to someone else’s shrubbery, trees,
fences, buildings, or livestock. To collect, you’ll have
to avoid property posted against trespassing.

An average-priced vehicle of around $1,025 would
cost about $64 to insure for 12 months. This includes
$25,000 liability (maximum for one accident), and
$50 deductible comprehensive and collision. Guest
passenger liability is included. Uninsured motorist
coverage would cost an extra $4 to $6.

A few companies offer you a discount if more than

one all terrain vehicle is covered under the policy.
Some companies also provide insurance if you enter
your vehicle in organized competition.

Dune buggies

A dune buggy is a passenger vehicle, like a car or
jeep, modified for special purposes. Many insurance
companies feel it’s too risky to insure these vehicles
at all. Other companies insure them the same as
automobiles, especially if the dune buggy is to be
used on public roads.

One Chicago company insures on the basis of
value. For example, if you live in California and own
a dune buggy worth about $1,500, you would pay
$90 a year for $100,000 liability and property
damage coverage with $25 deductible. In Michigan,
the same coverage would cost $117. In both cases,
the buggy is covered only on beaches, not covered on
public roads.

Renting

If you can’t afford to buy a recreational vehicle—or
you’d rather try one out before you buy—you may be
able to rent one. In most cases, insurance is included
in the rental contracts; but check it out before you
ride off into the sunset.

Be careful about paying additional fees for
coverage that isn’t worthwhile. For example, certain
rental contracts offer reduced deductibles for an
extra fee, say, of $1.50 a day. Over a period of just a
few days, the cost of your contract has been
substantially increased. Be sure to ask yourself if you
really need the extra coverage after all.

Health and accident insurance

Most medical plans are valid for traveling, but if
you go boating or camping you might want extra
coverage. A short-term accidental death and
dismemberment policy costs about $1.75 to $2.15
per person for a minimum three-day coverage of
$5,000 for death or dismemberment, $500 for
accident medical expenses, plus $20 a day for 60
days if hospitalized. The same type of policy would
cost you about $5 per person for 14 days.

46. How much money is to be spent in recreational vehicles ‘ ‘this’ ’ year?_

47. Is extra insurance necessary for a sport vehicle? _

48. What are the two basic types of insurance to know about? _

49. Are boats classified uniformly by the companies?_

50. Are prices and terms generally competitive for motor homes? _

51. Most auto policies cover trailers very adequately? _

52. Few states require minimum liability on motorcycles-

53. Might using your bike in organized competition affect your deductible?

54. There is a great variance regarding policies for all terrain vehicles. _

Proceed to the Flexible reading and read the directions.

147

The Importance Of Being Flexible

FLEXIBLE READING

Tape Counter Setting.

Discussion. This selection, “Warnings of a Violent Nature” is filled with dates and figures. But the message is clear.

The article is a good example of one that has a general theme and relates pertinent facts to the development of that
theme. It provides a good opportunity to profitably use your skimming techniques. Skim for the main points in the
paragraphs, rather than just to determine the general theme.

Directions. Time yourself as you read. Press the joystick button to begin reading and again when you finish. After you
answer the 5 questions that follow this article, record your scores in the Success Log Box.

Selection: “Warnings of a Violent Nature,” written by Janet Hopson;

reprinted by permission from Outside Magazine.
Copyright (c) by Mariah Publications Corporation.

Animals are aware of precursors before
earthquakes;

Let us summarize their anomalous be¬
havior for prediction.

Cattle, sheep, mules, and horses do not
enter corrals,

Rats move their homes and flee.

Hibernating snakes leave their burrows
early,

Frightened pigeons continuously fly and
do not return to nests.

Rabbits raise their ears, jump aimlessly
and bump things,

Fish are frightened, jump above water
surface.

Every family and every household joins
in observation,

The people’s war against earthquakes
must be won.

—Rules for earthquake prediction ,
issued by the Seismological Office of
Tientsin , China

The Chinese ardently believe that weird animal
behavior can help predict large earthquakes. And
considering their success in forecasting temblors, the
evidence of skittish livestock and clumsy rabbits is hard
to ignore. Belatedly, scientists in the United States have
begun to investigate the value of monitoring animal
behavior to predict earthquakes, violent weather, and
other cataclysmic environmental changes. Some of the
initial results look promising, but others indicate that an
early warning system based on turkeys and yaks
probably will never do for a modern society.

On February 4, 1975, a powerful earthquake rumbled

through Haicheng, in China’s Liaoning province.
Buildings tumbled and bridges fell, but there were very
few injuries. Hours before the earthquake most residents
had been evacuated from their factories and communes
to safe ground. Chinese officials estimate that a million
lives were spared, and credit thousands of amateur
earthquake watchers with this miraculous prediction.
These observers took regular readings of electrical
currents flowing through the ground; listened for
strange rumblings; and watched for bizarre animal
behavior, lightning, and glowing emanations from the
earth. Hundreds of reports started to flood in: Pigs were
climbing walls and biting off each others’ tails: turtles
were jumping from the water screaming. Portable
seismic stations were rushed to the area, and readings
were taken of electrical and magnetic changes in the
earth and of radon changes in well water. (This isotope is
released deep in the earth when rocks crack under the
great stress that builds before an earthquake.) A state of
emergency was declared. People were evacuated, and
after a few hours, huddled together in safety, they felt the
fearsome rumbling and shaking.

Two other earthquakes over 7.0 on the Richter scale
were predicted in China in recent years, but the
forecasting network also has had its failures. In 1973 an
entire population was evacuated at night in a winter
storm — and no earthquake materialized. Then there
was the tragedy of July 1976, when the dramatic
indicators failed to show up in T’angshan, an industrial
city 100 miles southeast of Peking on the Yellow Sea. The
turtles didn’t scream and the livestock failed to panic —
or if they did, no one noticed. The second worst
earthquake in recorded history ripped through
T’angshan, killing as many as 750,000 people and
leveling 75 percent of the city’s multistory buildings.

148

Geologists have called 1976 the worst year for great
quakes in modern times. Besides the Tangshan disaster,
50,000 lives were lost in earthquakes in Guatemala, Italy,
Turkey, and the Philippines. With that sort of death toll,
understanding earthquake prediction is more than a
matter of satisfying scientific curiosity. How does it work
— when it works at all?

History turns out to be the most basic predictive tool.
Where there have been strong quakes in the past, there
are likely to be more in the future. Many people think
California is the only state with seismic potential, but
other danger spots include western Washington; the
Rockies in Idaho, Montana, and Utah; the New Madrid
fault system that underlies the Missouri bootheel and
adjoining parts of Illinois, Arkansas, Tennessee, and
Kentucky; the area around Charleston, South Carolina,
where 90 percent of the buildings were damaged by a
quake in 1886; Boston, which experienced a quake that
toppled 1,200 chimneys just before the Revolutionary
War; and western New York State, along the Great
Lakes. In all of these areas, slipping and grinding of
adjacent tectonic plates and underground faults is
impeded by “sticky” spots that must eventually break
free.

In addition to historical hints, there is physical
evidence of impending disaster. Geologists can detect
changes in air pressure, gravity, the tilt and elevation of
the earth in a given area, low-frequency sounds,
electromagnetic and static electricity fields, water
levels, and emissions of gas from rock fissures. These
harbingers can occur years before the expected quake
(the Palmdale bulge in southern California, for example,
uptilted many years ago) or just a few minutes before a
temblor starts (lightning or electrically charged glowing
gases issuing from the ground). If animals are indeed
able to predict quakes, it must be some of these transient
signs that tip them off — and scare them senseless at the
same time.

But can a pig or a snake detect changes in the
electromagnetic field, shifts in gravity, or the low-
frequency sounds of massive rock plates grinding and
cracking miles beneath the earth’s surface? In 1976,
geologists, biologists, and seismologists from around the
world met at the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park,
California (itself just a few miles from the infamous San
Andreas fault), to answer that question.

The answer was unequivocally yes. Animals can sense
a wide range of subtle physical changes that humans
often miss. The conferees were less certain, however,
about the consistency with which animals respond to
these environmental indicators. Some quakes go entirely
unnoticed. In the process of answering the question, the
Menlo Park conference produced the best collection of
animal earthquake anecdotes ever assembled — a body of
observations that is hard to dismiss, even in the absence

of scientific proof.

Italian archives from 373 B.C. show that moles, mice,
and weasles swarmed from the ground minutes before a
quake. In 1868 flocks of sea birds flew inland and
screeched hysterically before a Chinese temblor. Modern
Chinese zoo keepers reported that just before a large
earthquake in 1969, tigers were depressed, yaks rolled on
their sides and refused to eat, and pandas held their
heads and screamed. The Chinese have also noted
anomalous plant behavior. Cabbage and potato vines
bloomed before a quake in late fall; apricot trees were
said to have flowered in winter just before the Haicheng
quake.

In Japan, most observations of abnormal behavior
center around aquatic life — catching sardines with
stomachs full of mud (even though they don’t normally
bottom-feed), or taking nets filled with catfish rather
than eels. One observation befits a Japanese horror film.
Before a 7.0 earthquake in 1855, hundreds of crabs
crawled into downtown Tokyo.

Even in the skeptical United States, observations of
abnormal animal behavior before quakes are common.
They range from the standard barking dogs and biting
pigs to the more exotic: foxes rushing into theopen in full
daylight, Kodiak bears leaving their winter dens early,
and alligators fleeing their bayous to take refuge in the
woods — roaring loudly all the way.

Scientists at the Menlo Park conference compared
these bizarre observations with all the physcial
earthquake precursors in order to determine which
phenomenon might be a cue for animals. In almost every
case, however, the changes before a strong bout of
seismic activity are relatively small — smaller, in fact,
than the normal daily fluctuations of gravity on a moving
animal, or air pressure changes due to weather fronts.
This eliminated all physical cues but three: the emission
of gas from rock fissures, the sounds from grinding rock
plates, and the effects of static electricity — in this case,
positive air ions. There was no evidence of gas smells
associated with abnormal behavior, and the effect of
sound would be limited to animals in the immediate
vicinity of the quake’s epicenter. Only the positive ions
seemed to hold promise for explaining the odd behavior.

A controversy over how positive ions affect health has
been raging now for about 30 years. Negative ion
generators — little appliances that spew out negatively
charged particles — became popular in the 1950s to fend
off the supposedly damaging effects of positive ions,
including migraine headaches, nausea, vomiting,
irritability, and colds. Many people bought them to treat
chronic medical problems rather than the effects of
positive ions alone, and the Food and Drug
Administration tried to stop that practice. Nonetheless,
studies in the late 1970s showed conclusively that positive
ions can induce all of the above symptoms in perhaps 30

149

percent of the public.

(These positive ions are also generated during the hot,
dry winds — the “ill winds’’ — that blow in some parts of
the world. Among them are the Swiss foehn , the
California Santa Ana, the chinook of the Rockies, the
Middle Eastern sharav , and the Argentine zonda.)

The connection with earthquake is simple: There
seems to be a huge increase in positive ions just before
some large quakes. The atmospheric condition can
increase the level of serotonin in the blood, and this
neurohormone is thought to cause the unpleasant
symptoms. Since many animals have serotonin as well,
their odd behavior could be due to feeling rotten — all of a
sudden. If this malaise were superimposed on a pattern
of tiny changes in air pressure, sounds, gravity, and
electrical phenomena (none a sufficient cue by itself),
then the animal might sense something was very wrong
and try to flee or defend itself. If, in addition,
underground water tables changed, burrows would
become inundated and hibernating and sleeping animals
would be driven out into the open to complete the scene of
panic.

Largely unexplored are the connections between an
animal’s ability to sense a coming earthquake and its
instinct for taking shelter before a storm. But since
awareness of a changing environment can be critical to
survival, there is every reason to expect a multispecies,
sharply tuned talent for predicting both. But tapping
this talent and, in turn, ordering precipitous human
action — like evacuating cities — is another matter
altogether.

A study of chimps at the Stanford Outdoor Primate

Research Facility showed that on two separate occasions,
chimps acted abnormally the day before a significant
quake on the nearby San Andreas fault. Further
analysis, however, showed that they acted exactly the
same way before holiday weekends — because of the
increased air pollution from heavy traffic on the nearby
freeway. The chimps also failed to react at all before
other quakes of equal magnitude. Either the positive ions
weren’t bristling in the air that day, or the changing
pattern of gravity, electromagnetic waves, and air
pressure didn’t register. The quakes surprised the
chimps as much as they did the scientists.

In another study a group of geologists from UCLA has
for three years been monitoring kangaroo rats and
pocket mice in artificial burrows near the Palmdale
bulge. So far their results are ambiguous, but they hope
to find which organ and sensory systems are used to
detect quakes. Perhaps then a mechanical or electronic
instrument with homologous powers, could be used more
reliably than animals.

Another study, “Project Earthquake Watch,” is using a
network of 1,200 volunteers throughout California to
monitor the behavior of livestock, zoo animals, seeing-eye
dogs, pets, and animals in the wild. The results have been
inconclusive, but if a great quake ever strikes California,
it’s nice to know that the animals will be consulted.

Not, of course, that their advice would be followed
without similar — but less hysterical — warning from
the scientific community. One certainly wouldn’t want to
be roused from bed because of the mistaken complaintof
an air-polluted chimpanzee.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1. Residents of Haicheng were evacuated in time to escape many of the ravages of a 1975 earthquake
thanks to

a. volcanic rumblings in nearby mountainous areas

b. seismic stations located in the area

c. thousands of amateur earthquake watchers

d. unusual behavior of aquatic life in the area

2. The most basic tool for predicting earthquakes in a given area is

a. bizarre animal behavior

b. a history of strong quakes

c. changes in the electromagnetic field

d. changes in the flowering times of plants

3. Of all the physical precursors of earthquakes, animals most probably respond in a bizarre way to

a. positive ions in the air

b. the odor of gasses

c. unusual sound waves

d. rapidly changing weather fronts

150

cr p

4. In Japan, observations of abnormal earthquake-related behaviors are almost entirely related to
domestic farm animals
the budding time of common flowers

c. crabs deserting the sea for the suburbs

d. aquatic life

5. Chimpanzees at the Stanford Primate Research Facility

a. reliably predict earthquakes with their unusual behavior

b. appear to lack any particular sensitivity to earthquake-related phenomena

c. react similarly to auto-related air pollution and earthquake-related phenomena

d. have joined the Earthquake Watchers Union and are out on strike

SUCCESS LOG FLEXIBLE READING

READING SPEED _ WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE_%

(20 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

151

READING PROGRESS GRAPH

UNIT 6

Directions READING EFFICIENCY INDEX_

1. Refer to the three Unit 6 Success Log Boxes and enter in the computer your three reading rates and three comprehen¬
sion scores, as the screen directs.

2. Record your Unit 6 REI above and on the REI Record page in the back of your Workbook.

3. Press EEZQ1 to load the Reading Progress Graph. While the graph loads, read “Familiar Territory” below.

FAMILIAR TERRITORY

Were you able to identify the main point in several of the paragraphs? The article is descriptive, and many
paragraphs do have a main thought. But a couple of the longer paragraphs have more than one main thought! Don’t
get discouraged when paragraphs and articles don’t fit a pattern — just do your best to track down the relationship
each paragraph has to the overall topic.

One very helpful hint in getting the gist as well as some facts from an article, is to preview the article as we dis¬
cussed in Unit 5. Skim it first for key words and phrases, for the general style. Then go back and either read or skim
each paragraph for the main thought.

Remember, your previewing will familiarize you with the topic or presentation. And the more familiar you are
with it, the more facts and ideas you will comprehend. Compare your own reactions to several of these articles.
Were you knowledgeable about energy and not about wines? Or vice versa? Reading about something you’re
familiar with is much easier! Learn to acquaint yourselves with material before digging in, and then apply your
techniques for concentration and skimming. You will be amazed at what information you can learn.

4. Enter your Pretest and Units 1-6 RETs when the screen prompts you to do so. (Obtain these from the REI Record
page in your Workbook.) Press ESZEfil after each entry.

5. Press QuQ31 to view your graph.

152

UNIT

STRIKE A MATCH

• To begin Unit 7 complete the steps in the STARTING UP section.

• Be sure you have inserted Cassette 4 with Side 1 up.

• After listening to the audio segment, turn to the Warm-up and read the directions.

153

WARM UP EXERCISE

Directions. The exercise is similar to the one in Unit 6, so set your Reading Window Rate a little faster than last time.
Make sure it really challenges you. Yet still try to get a majority of the items correct! Push the joystick button when you
are ready. Record your results below.

WARM-UP EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY MINUTES

SCORE _

SECOND TRY MINUTES

SCORE _

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Phrase-reading exercise.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE Tape Counter Setting_

Directions. We reminded you in the audio portion to continually try to see more words in each eye stop. Seeing only
one phrase in the Reading Window for each line of print will encourage you to do this. You may want to start at your same
beginning words-per-minute rate as for Unit 6, and then increase your rate as you become accustomed to the movements
of the Reading Window. Work on becoming consistent, comfortable, and confident!

Push the joystick button when you’re ready to start. Record your rate below when you finish.

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY READING SPEED _

SECOND TRY READING SPEED _

WPM

Note: Record the tape counter setting in the space provided at the beginning of the Paced reading.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

155

Consolidate Your Gains

PACED READING Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. Again, consolidate your gains. How did your pace on the Phrase-reading exercise feel? Try to maintain it
now. Make only a modest increase in your tones-per-minute rate this time. Get the confidence that you strive for and get
most of the important details from what you read. Push the joystick button when you are ready to start and again when
you finish.

Wagar, Ivan. “Race of the Americas,” Braniff Place, 2(6), pp. 8-10.

No sport in history of the U.S. has exploded into
big time the way motocross has. This year the AMA
will sanction almost 2000 motocross events from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, with more than a hundred
riders per event. That adds up to a lot of participants,
but more important is the size of the viewing
audience. About one million people will pay to
spectate at motocross races in the United States this
year. And, ABC’s Wide World of Sports claims 28
million viewers, making motocross the top motor
sport on TV only topped in ratings by Mohammed
Ali and the World Olympics!

Because of this surge in popularity, a lot of
individuals have joined CYCLE WORLD (one of the
very first promoters of motocross in the U.S.) as
promoters of motocross, but none are more
enthusiastic than Braniff International Airlines.

So, Braniff Airlines, along with several of bike
riding enthusiasts and well-to-do businessmen in
Lima, agreed to sponsor a dream: The Race of the
Americas. When all was said and done, a national
holiday weekend was chosen, and two days of
motocross were scheduled with racing on Friday and
Sunday, and a day off in between for a barbecue and
sight-seeing. ‘The riders’total points from three motos
each day would decide the overall winner.

No less than eight South American countries
turned out for the race — Argentina, Chile,
Venezuela, Colombia, Brazil, El Salvador, Equador
and Peru. There was only one entry from the United
States because the riders who had been invited
already had other race commitments. Wyman Priddy
from the Lone Star State of Texas (complete with the
accent) was the rider selected to represent the States,
and he proved to be one of the best ambassadors of
goodwill ever sent to South America. It wasn’t long
before the local press had dubbed him ‘the quiet
American’(“shucks, that’s only ‘cause I don’t speak
their language”). He didn’t need to know their
language — there was a mutual understanding
between him and the race fans right from the start. In

bright green leathers, to match his green Kawasaki,
he meant business and the race fans knew it.

The venue for the first Race of the Americas was in
a hilly, almost Southern California-like desert, called
Manchay, a dozen miles from the city of Lima.
Considering that Manchay is desert, “El Clan Braniff”
did an amazing job of creating a circuit to truly test
the skill of the 40 international riders competing in
the race. Small, about a mile in length, the circuit
features a safe starting area that will accommodate up
to 45 riders, and a mechanical starting gate that was
finished only the night before the race; it is the only
mechanical gate in South America. Because the gate
was constructed from photos of the mechanism at
Saddleback Park, Calif., the whole affair when the flag
falls is termed a “Saddleback start.”

Unfortunately, there were the same initial
problems with the gate that Saddleback Park
encountered with their first effort; it was not high
enough to really stop riders from jumping the gun,
and when 40 angry motocross machines pressured
front wheels against the long restraining rail it was
not possible for the gate operator to move the release
lever. The problem was solved by laying a chalk line a
half a meter behind the actual gate. Riders were told
at the riders’ meeting that crowding the gate would
result in a 1-lap penalty, and because the motos were
only 10 laps in distance, there were no violations of
the rule. There was no way a 1-lap or 10-percent
handicap could be made up, even by the greatest rider
ever born, especially on the torturous 1-mile circuit
of Manchay.

For the opening international moto on Friday
morning, the Norte Americano, Wyman Priddy, was
asked to start farthest from the pole; the chatter
around the pits was that since Priddy was the only
rider in the race familiar with a Saddleback start, he
should be handicapped by starting at the very end.
But sometimes these things have a way of backfiring.
Priddy was the rider nearest to the man who had to
heave all his body weight on the lever to release the

156

start gate. As the tension mounted, engines revving,
Priddy was less than 2-ft. away, looking straight into
the eyes of the man operating the lever. Despite the
handicap of having to travel the farthest distance on
the first turn, Priddy was the fourth man at the turn,
and from then on was chasing a Venezuelan jet
named Ricardo Boada on a Maico and fellow
countryman Jesus Urosa on a C-Z. And that was how
the first moto finished. Venezuela 1st and 2nd and
United States 3rd. It was obvious that the
Venezuelans were going to be tough to beat.

In the second moto, Venezuelan Boada crashed
early in the race, leaving Priddy to battle it out with
another equally quick Venezuelan named Freddie
Brandt, son of the Honda distributor for Venezuela
and riding a Honda Elsinore especially flown in from
Japan for the race. The fans by this time had decided
Priddy was their man, and excitement began to
mount as Priddy won the second moto, with the
handsome South American champion Kuto Horta
(Chile) finishing 2nd, and Freddie Brandt 3rd.
Ricardo Boada, after crashing early in the race,
finished in 8th place.

The final international moto of the day combined
the excitement of the first two races with Priddy
trying desperately to catch Boada and Brandt. He
finally got by Brandt and ended up 2nd to Boada.

So ended the first day. The Texan had lost six
points with his 3-1-2 finishes, while Boada followed
closely with 10 points, by virtue of his 1-8-1 finishes.

While the international 250 cc motos were the
prime attraction, there was a national event for 125s.
This was designed as a filler, and the entry consisted
of a dozen or so young novice riders.

But there was this young kid, on a Honda 125,
who balked on the start and began the first race in
10th place. By the 7th lap, though, he not only led
the race but had begun to lap the back markers. It
seems that he, Gustavo Prado, is the grandson of a
former President of Peru, Manuel Prado by name; a
member of the aristocracy, or “40 families” of Peru.
Since Manuel owns the largest horse ranch in Peru,
Gustavo, who won all three 125 races, picked up the
nickname “Secretariat.”

Then came Saturday, the day off. Our driver, Juan
Espinosa, has to be the most enthusiastic man in
Lima. He had read the extensive press coverage of the
Texan in the evening and morning newspapers, and
couldn’t do enough for us. Although Juan could
speak only limited English, and our Spanish was, to
say the least, inadequate, we managed to find our
way to one of the open air markets for which Lima is
famous. Among the arts and crafts in the market stalls
there are beautiful llama fur rugs. The llama, with
its dirty habit of spitting a great wad of smelly gorp
up to 20 ft. when it is angered, is the mainstay animal

in Peru. Used for transportation, clothing and food,
the llama makes a camel look fairly conventional by
animal standards.

Priddy and his mechanic DeVaughn Mitchell (also
Texan) decided they had to take home a llama L rug.
That was the beginning of two hours of haggling,
cajoling, entreating, take-it-or-leave-it bargaining.
Finally the stern-faced Indian woman let the guys
have the rug for half the asking price — 900 soles —
(approx. $21 American). She then broke into a smile
and kissed them goodbye.

Because we spent so much time at the market
haggling over rugs and looking at the beautiful but
remarkably inexpensive gold and silver jewelry, we
had to miss the sightseeing and go directly to a
barbecue at the home of the Government Sport
Commissioner Mario Suito and his very charming
wife. No less than 200 people invaded the gardens of
his beautiful residence for an afternoon of gaiety,
feasting and bench racing.

It was quite a party, with Indian musicians and
dancers giving a display of native Peruvian dances. We
sampled the typical Peruvian appetizer known as
ceuiche , a highly seasoned raw fish marinated in
lemon juice and charcoal broiled anticuchos, beef
heart squares prepared with vinegar and hot chili. The
favorite drink was Pisco, a distilled grape brandy, and
known as the national drink. Pisco sours are very
popular.

Most of the attention at the barbecue was centered
on Priddy and his experiences in riding against U.S.
motocross stars such as Brad Lackey, Jim Weinert,
Pomeroy and Tripes. Priddy left the party early, for
he knew that he had to win the first moto Sunday in
order to allow for any eventuality that might come
up during the day. The responsibility of being the
only U.S. rider in the race was a heavy burden. As
Priddy put it, “They sure expect a lot from oT
Priddy, and I sure don’t want to disappoint
anybody.”

Probably because of the extensive coverage of the
event in the newspapers, no less than 12,000 people
left the ever constant winter drizzle of Lima to bask
in the hot sunshine of Manchay and to watch the lone
Yankee take on South America’s best. The crowd was
of an amazing size when we consider that back in
Lima the soccer match (largest South American
spectator sport) was Peru vs. Columbia; one of THE
sporting events of the year.

Making no mistakes after a good start, the
determined Priddy glided his Kawasaki to an almost
easy win in the first moto, thus ensuring a
comfortable start to a serious day’s racing. The crash
and burn tactics of the Argentine Gilera team did not
go on without notice. Racing heavy four-stroke 250
Singles against the lithe Oriental and German

157

two-strokes, team Gilera ace rider Claudio Pesce
wrestled his under-powered mount with a tenacity
that made strong men weep for his survivability.
Crashing hard several times, the young ace joined us
on the return trip to hopefully take up racing in the
U.S., and (hopefully) become a star outside of his
native Argentina. A couple of merit badges should
also be given to the El Salvador riders Harbort and
Garcia for their daring exploits on virtually standard
Honda XL250 four-stroke Singles, but their best
efforts could not put them in the first 10 over-all
finishers.

Sunday’s second moto also turned out to be a
Priddy benefit. Urged on by the chants of
“Priddy-Priddy Ole,” the Texan led the way for
Chilean Horta and Venezuelan Brandt. Meanwhile
Secretariat continued his invincible winning streak by
leading all of the support races with unbelievable
ease.

The final moto was almost anti-climatic. Priddy
had only to finish in the first five positions in order
to win on total accumulated points. It is possible that
the Venezuelans, had they found a way to work
together, could still find a way to unseat the Texan.
But, as one sage put it, “The Venezuelans fight more
among themselves than they do with" other people.”
So there was no game plan. They all wanted to beat
Priddy as individuals, which certainly would give him
overall victory.

1. Lately, the sport of motocross has

a. become part of the World Olympics

b. suddenly soared into popularity

c. been having its traditional high and low points

d. been determined the most exciting, death-defying sport in existence

2. Wyman Priddy was a fine goodwill ambassador because

a. he was fluent in the native language and enjoyed talking with the fans

b. his soft spoken manner was appealing to the girls

c. he had a southern accent that proved popular with the press

d. there was a mutual understanding between him and the fans

3. The problem of “jumping the gun” was solved by

a. putting up a stronger restraining rail

b. imposing a five-lap penalty for doing it

c. drawing a chalk line before the actual starting line

d. warning the riders that the race would be cancelled if they tried it

4. Since Wyman Priddy was the most experienced rider in the race,

a. other racers ganged up on him

b. most people placed their bets on him

c. he was given an older cycle to use

d. he was asked to start on the end

Such a ploy might have been successful, for while
negotiating a double humped knoll, Priddy found
neutral on a gear change from second to third, and
had the unfortunate experience of a nose dive as the
second hump kicked his rear wheel into the air. The
engine was still running as the Texan remounted, and
worked his way back to 3rd place to clinch overall
victory in The First Race of the Americas.

The Trophy Presentation took place in the Hotel
Crillon in Lima. Guest of honor was the Mayor of
Lima, Eduardo Dibos Chappuis, a very unusual mayor
as he plans to race a three-litre Porsche in the 24-hour
race at Daytona, Florida, next February. Once a
motorcycle road racer himself, he is very enthused
over the sport of motocross and pleased the audience
by saying he would do everything he could to support
motocross in the future. Wyman Priddy received
seven tropies in all, including a solid silver bowl which
he wondered how he was going to get through
customs. !

Several things are significant about The First Race
of the Americas, not the least of which is the fact
that riders from nine countries competed; and they
all were Americans. When we consider that there was
no representation from Canada, Mexico and Panama,
I wonder about the participation in the next annual
Race of the Americas, and the eventual popularity of
motocross over soccer as a national sport in South
America.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

158

5. When Priddy and his mechanic bought a llama rug, they

a. got it for half price

b. refused to haggle with the woman

c. cheerfully paid twice the asking price

d. paid about $50 in American money for it

6. How did Priddy feel about being the only U.S. rider?

a. unconcerned

b. very responsible

c. extremely nervous

d. glad for the chance to show off — Texas style

7. The author felt there were so many spectators at the event because of the

a. fantastic weather the day of the race

b. extensive coverage by the local press

c. South Americans’ great loyalty to the sport of motocross

d. South Americans’ lack of interest in the soccer match

8. The Venezuelans couldn’t beat Priddy because

a. their game plan failed

b. they didn’t work as a team

c. they were far too inexperienced for him

d. several of them were disqualified

9. In the final moto, Priddy

a. crashed before placing third

b. cruised easily into first place

c. had a vicious bout with the El Salvador riders

d. finished tenth but was still the overall winner

10. The motocross race was significant because

a. a North American won in South America

b. all countries in the Americas participated

c. it marked the advent of competitive sports in South America

d. it brought enthusiastic participation from many parts of the Americas

SUCCESS LOG PACED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(10 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

159

Have a Good Time

TIMED READING

Directions. In reading the selection that follows you’re going to take an intriguing trip through South America. With a
young American celebrity. Travel as rapidly, but as comfortably as possible while reading “Miss Teenage America
Visits South America. ’ ’ Record your scores, after you answer the 10 comprehension questions. Press the joystick button
to begin and again when you finish.

Galbraith, Melissa. “Miss Teenage America Visits South America,”

Braniff Place, 2(6), pp. 12-14.

Imagine a canoe trip down the mighty Amazon — a
journey into the mysterious, ancient world of the
Incas — an excursion through an old Spanish town
where the Gauchos still roam the countryside — or an
expedition to the paradisiac islands of San Bias which
are still inhabited by the Cuna Indians!

Unbelievable! — but unbelievably real for me,
Melissa Galbraith as these miraculous wonders were
all part of a fifteen day tour of South America.
Without a doubt, this trip was the highlight of my
reign as Miss Teenage America.

My Latin American adventure began immediately
when I left the Miami Airport on the Braniff
International flight to Peru. The hostess, speaking
both English and Spanish, generated the colorful
spirit of South America itself.

Of all the beautiful places I visited on the Latin
continent, the most striking was my first stop, Peru.
With its skyscrapers, wide boulevards, and neon signs,
Lima, the magnificent capital of Peru, is surprisingly
beautiful. Its cathedrals, mansions, churches, and
plazas fuse into a picturesque blend of Colonial
Spain. Our tour of Lima included a visit to the
National Cathedral, the oldest building in Lima, and
the Plaza de Armas, and President’s Palace, where we
observed the majestic changing of the guards.

Yes, Lima, Peru, was a mixture of antiquity and
modernity. One of the more contemporary buildings
was the local television station. Unlike our luxurious
Madison Avenue television studios, Lima’s T.V.
station was a dilapidated, one-room structure — very
simple. Nonetheless, I had quite an interesting experi¬
ence here. I appeared on a television program called
“What Is My Secret” — very similar to “I’ve Got A
Secret.” Four panelists tried to guess who I was, but
when they asked the questions, the host of the pro¬
gram had to interpret them for me. Once in a while,
however, the host and the panelists conversed with
each other, and the audience laughed and applauded.
Obviously something was funny, and I still find myself
wondering what in the world it was!

My next adventure was an excursion from Lima to
Iquitos where I was greeted by a Braniff

representative, and his daughter and son who brought
me delicate pink flowers from the Amazon jungle. We
then had an unusual lunch at the Amazon Lodge —
papaya juice, pineapple juice, cocona, and fresh
palmitos, the heart of the palm.

After lunch, we got into our dugout canoe and
ventured down the Amazon to an Indian camp. It was
a fascinating but frightening experience. The jungle
itself is awesome in its beauty, thick with vegetation.

The Indians live in primitive grass huts clustered
along the river, in a small community called a Mingo,
the equivalent of a commune. While we were there,
the adult Indians, armed with bamboo blow guns that
released poisonous darts, were hunting the Amazon
for their evening meal. The children, meanwhile,
amused themselves, like children everywhere, by
playing in the dirt. Two of these naked urchins, about
three or four years old, went swimming in the
Amazon. One of our guides asked them if they were
afraid of the piranhas, but the boys said that piranhas
never bothered anyone unless he had a cut or blood
on him.

From the Amazon wilderness, we returned to
civilization and then flew over the snow-capped
Andes to Cuzco, the sacred city of the Inca Empire.
Some 10,500 feet above sea-level, walled off from the
world by the Andes, I felt lost in time. Mute
reminders of the lost Inca Empire were stone walls,
the unique Inca defense system. Built on lush green
terraces without any known means of leverage and
without mortar, the walls consisted of perfectly
knitted stones, some of them weighing as much as
600 tons — obviously the work of a culture in an
advanced stage of technology.

The death of a once thriving civilization is most
pronounced in the silent mountain-topped ruins of
Machu Picchu. From a pinnacle high amid the clouds,
overlooking miles of trackless jungle, these ruins
include the remains of one hundred different
stairways, the Watch Tower, the Sacred Square, and
several temples — the Main Temple, the Temple of
Three Windows, the Temple of the Moon; and finally,
the Temple of the Sun — or the Sun Clock. Many of

160

the Inca ruins, such as the old Inca bridge, are still
being used today. Machu Picchu is truly a land of
mystery. It is a sensational example of human
ingenuity, for the Incas built this city without iron
and steel tools and without the wheel. Another
mysterious wonder — the only human remains
discovered were those of women and children.

Returning to the modern world of Lima, I found
myself discothequing in the Jumbo 747 — a night
club shaped like a huge jet. Feeling much at “home”
again, I listened to the rock ’n roll music and watched
the Peruvian teenagers “go wild” on the dance
floor — just as the American teenagers do.

If one really wants to keep in tempo with today’s
pulsating times, he must visit Buenos Aires,
Argentina. Having been transported into an ancient
world while in Peru, I expected to undergo similar
journeys in Argentina. How mistaken I was! Buenos
Aires was very modern — high-rise apartment build¬
ings, swimming pools, tennis courts, shopping arcades,
subways, parks, theaters, and opera houses.

I was overwhelmed with the rapid transformation
of this South American city. I felt as if I were in New
York, trying to keep up with the hurried pace of busy
people. The dress of the Argentines was quite
fashionable. Furthermore, the women of Argentina
are as concerned about elegance and gracefulness as
they are about wearing the latest fashions. Perhaps
this is why some say that the women of Argentina
“constitute the best view in the city.”

We took a boat cruise down the Tigre River, and it
was quite a change from our canoe trip down the
Amazon. The river was simply jammed with traffic —
vessels, ships, cruisers, yachts, speedboats and — in
addition — deep-sea divers and water skiers.
Contrasting to the primitive grass huts along the
Amazon, were yacht clubs, rowing clubs, and racquet
clubs.

We finally left the rat-race of the city and toured
an old Spanish town, San Antonio de Areco. This was
the land of the Gauchos, or South American
cowboys. The Gauchos wore droopy-rimmed hats,
bolero vests, gaucho pants, and ornate coin belts in
which they carried their dagger-type swords. But the
pride of the Gaucho lies in his saddle. Soft leather
saddles embellished with gold and silver command
respect.

San Antonio de Areco holds a wealth of history.
The Parish Church, one of the oldest churches in
Argentina, is located here; while the Old Bridge, the
first toll bridge, built in 1857, is still in use today.
Saloons, water wells, pigeon houses, wheat mills, old
carriages, and a colonial coach contribute to the
historical scenery.

Of course, we couldn’t leave Argentina without
having a steak dinner. After all, Argentines are known

for their cattle. They have annual cattle shows in
which the animals are awarded prizes for the fine
results of a long and careful breeding. Imagine paying
only $1.25 for a juicy, two-inch thick steak!

From the cattle grazing lands of Argentina, we
advanced to the greatest fishing area of the world
— Panama — which, loosely translated, by the way,
means “an abundance of fish.”

In Panama, I found a definite North American
influence. North American products are sold
everywhere. And nightclubs and casinos are as
integral to Panama City as they are to Las Vegas.

N aturally when one mentions Panama, he
immediately thinks of the Canal Zone. The intricate
workings of the locks in the Canal were as fascinating
as the Inca architecture — another breath-taking
example of human ingenuity and modern technology!

Finally, we took another short flight across the
Isthmus over the untamed jungles to the Caribbean
Sea and primitive San Bias Islands, where the Cuna
Indians live in their own serene world. The Cuna
women are noted for their colorful molas — blouses,
hand-sewn in a variety of designs.

An interesting feature of the Cuna Indian woman is
that her nose is pierced with a gold ring. The amount
of gold she wears indicates how well she is liked by
her tribe.

Exploring the world of South America has
certainly been an experience to look back upon. If I
could relive one experience that I had during my
reign as Miss Teenage America, I’m sure I would
choose my Latin American adventure.

Braniff International is a National Association
Sponsor of Miss Teenage America , a relationship
initiated by the 1973 awards.

Braniff International sponsors the Miss Teenage
America Contest for four primary reasons.

1) To show its response for the appreciation
of the youth of America.

2) As a demonstration of its awareness that
today's young people are action oriented and
keenly aware of their responsibilities to each
other , their countries , their nation and to the
world environment.

3) To express its knowledge of what young
people want and gain from travel.

4) To encourage young people to travel within
the United States and other nations..

Braniff International is dedicated to the principle
that travel , within the nation and to other nations , is
vital to national and internal development and
prosperity.

Miss Teenage America serves as Braniff Inter¬
national's “Youth Travel Counselor" and “ Good-
Will Ambassador" during the year of her reign.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

161

1. Of all Melissa’s stops on the Latin continent, which was the most striking for her?

a. Peru

b. Argentina

c. Panama

d. San Bias Islands

2. When Melissa went to Lima, what did she do?

a. converse in Spanish with a native family

b. have dinner with a native family

c. appear on a television show

d. enjoy the abundance of delicate pink flowers

3. What was the name of the Indian camp which Melissa visited?

a. a Cuzco

b. an Iquitos

c. a Mingo

d. a Cuna

4. What did Melissa especially appreciate about the walls around the Inca empire?

a. their fantastic height

b. the intricate carving on the stones

c. the tiering of the terraces about them

d. the perfectly knitted stones in them

5. Which of the following is a mystery of Machu Picchu?

a. how the Incas constructed their temples without the use of tools

b. how the Incas connected their primitive wheels

c. why only temples and no dwelling places were built

d. why the only human remains discovered have been those of women and children

6. Melissa thinks Buenos Aires is

a. an oversized Argentine village

b. a lot like New York City

c. only a subtle contrast to Lima

d. quite large, but not too modern

7. The Argentines are known for their

a. cattle

b. old churches

c. soft leather saddles

d. silver and gold adornments

8. In Panama Melissa found

a. a city identical to Las Vegas

b. many structures similar to those of the Incas

c. a very old Spanish influence

d. a North American influence

9. What does the size of the gold ring in the Cuna Indian woman’s nose indicate?

a. whether she is married

b. the class of society to which she belongs

c. how well the tribe likes her

d. how many blouses she has hand-sewn herself

10. Which of the following is not given as a reason for Braniff’s sponsorship of the Miss Teenage
America Contest?

a. showing its appreciation of America’s youth

b. encouraging young people to travel

c. teaching the youth of other countries to be more like our own

d. expressing its knowledge of what young people gain from travel

162

SUCCESS LOG TIMED READING

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(10 points per correct answer)

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Techniques section.

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

Get Organized

TECHNIQUES Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. Notetaking and outlining skills go hand in hand. If you do them effectively, you will be able to grasp the
facts and general ideas in an article and understand their relationship.

To take good notes on an article, what do you do? Answer: Use your skimming techniques! You look for the key words
and phrases and topic sentences, then quickly jot them down. Be sure to stick with the key words—don’t lapse into record¬
ing unessential details. And, organize your notes so they are easily understood by you or anyone else who reads them at a
later date.

A good way to organize is to create an outline—at least in your mind, if not on paper. It will help you relate each new
piece of information to the overall theme of the selection. And to sort out the superordinate and subordinate relationships
among the many ideas. Understanding the relationship of ideas is important if you want to remember them.

In this exercise we offer you practice in taking notes to complete partial outlines. Practice this skill, so that you begin to
do it automatically with substantive material you want to later recall.

1. Study the partial outline below. Then skim the selection quickly to find the missing subheads. If you do not find all of
them the first time you skim, go back to the beginning and skim rapidly a second, or even third, time. Don’t resort to
“studying” the paragraph. Write the missing information into the outline.

Excerpts from “Tips on Tea,”

Better Homes and Gardens , May, 1973
® Meredith Corporation, 1973.

As the bone of contention in the Boston Tea Party,
tea played an important role in propelling us toward
the American Revolution. In those days tea cost $30
to $50 per pound!

Basically, there are three kinds of tea — black,
green, and oolong. All come from the same type of
tea plant. The processing makes each kind different.

Black tea, the most popular in the United States, is
coppery colored, and rich and robust in the cup. This

I. Black

A. Most popular in U.S.

C. Fermented — when oxidized, leaves
turn bright copper

D. Variations

1 .

163

is a fermented tea. In the oxidation process, the
leaves change color and become a bright copper.
Black teas include Assam, Darjeeling, Earl Grey,
English Breakfast, and Lapsang Souchong, names
sometimes indicative of where the teas are grown.

Green tea gives you a light-colored beverage with a
distinctive flavor. While the leaves are withered to
make black and oolong tea, green tea leaves are
softened by steaming and heating, and retain their
characteristic green color. Green teas include Basket
Fired and Gunpowder.

Oolong, a pleasing compromise between black and
green, also makes a light-colored brew. Tea leaves are
partially fermented resulting in a greenish-brown leaf
color. When these leaves are dried, fermentation
ceases. Oolong teas include Formosa Oolong, Jasmine
scented with blossoms, and Peppermint.

If your taste runs to the exotic, you can get teas
blended with flowers, fruit peels, sugar, and a variety
of spices.

And if you’d rather do away with the ceremony
of tea brewing, a variety of instant teas are available.
Introduced in the 1950s, the instant tea lineup now
includes plain instant tea, tea flavored with sugar or
lemon, and tea pre-sweetened with non-caloric
sweetener.

II. Green

C. Leaves — softened by steaming and heating

D. Kinds

1 .

2 .

III. Oolong

A. Compromise between black and green

B. Color — light

D. Kinds

1 .

2 .

IV. Teas Blended

V. Instant Teas

Follow the same procedure to complete the next two outlines. See if you can fill them in with one less skimming of the
article.

“How to Write a Business Letter” by
Malcolm Forbes, President and
Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Magazine , 1980.

A good business letter can get you a job interview. How to Write a Business Letter

Get you off the hook.

Or get you money.

It’s totally asinine to blow your chances of getting
whatever you want — with a business letter that turns
people off instead of turning them on.

The best place to learn to write is in school. If you’re
still there, pick your teachers’ brains.

If not, big deal. I learned to ride a motorcycle at 50 and
fly balloons at 52. It’s never too late to learn.

Over 10,000 business letters come across my desk every
year. They seem to fall into three categories: stultifying if
not stupid, mundane (most of them), and first rate (rare).

Here’s the approach I’ve found that separates the
winners from the losers (most of it’s just good common
sense) — it starts before you write your letter.

164

Know what you want

If you don't, write it down — in one sentence. “I want to
get an interview within the next two weeks.” That
simple. List the major points you want to get across — it'll
keep you on course.

If you’re answering a letter, check the points that need
answering and keep the letter in front of you while you
write. This way you won't forget anything — that would
cause another round of letters.

And for goodness' sake, answer promptly if you’re
going to answer at all. Don’t sit on a letter — that invites
the person on the other end to sit on whatever you want
from him.

Plunge right in

Call him by name — not “Dear Sir, Madam, or Ms.”
“Dear Mr. Chrisanthopoulos” — and be sure to spell it
right. That’ll get him (thus you) off to a good start.

(Usually, you can get his name just by phoning his
company — or from a business directory in your nearest
library.)

Tell what your letter is about in the first paragraph.
One or two sentences. Don’t keep your reader guessing or
he might file your letter away — even before he finishes
it.

In the round file.

If you’re answering a letter, refer to the date it was
written. So the reader won’t waste time hunting for it.

People who read business letters are as human as thee
and me. Reading a letter shouldn’t be a chore — reward
the reader for the time he gives you.

Write so he'll enjoy it

Write entire letter from his point of view — what’s in it
for him ? Beat him to the draw — surprise him by
answering the questions and objections he might have.

Be positive — he’ll be more receptive to what you have
to say.

Be nice. Contrary to the cliche, genuinely nice guys
most often finish first or very near it. I admit it’s not easy
when you’ve got a gripe. To be agreeable while
disagreeing — that’s an art.

Be natural — write the way you talk. Imagine him
sitting in front of you — what would you say to him?

Business jargon too often is cold, stiff, unnatural.

Suppose I came up to you and said, “I acknowledge
receipt of your letter and I beg to thank you.” You’d think,
“Huh? You’re putting me on.”

The acid test — read your letter outloud when you’re
done. You might get a shock — but you’ll know for sure if
it sounds natural.

Don’t be cute or flippant. The reader won’t take you
seriously. This doesn’t mean you’ve got to be dull. You
prefer your letter to knock ’em dead rather than bore ’em
to death.

I. Know what you want

II. Plunge right in

III. Write a pleasing letter

A. Be positive

B. Be nice

C. Be natural (read your letter outloud to check it)

D. Don’t be cute or flippant

E. Use a sense of humor

165

Three points to remember:

Have a sense of humor. That’s refreshing anywhere — a
nice surprise in a business letter.

Be specific. If I tell you there’s a new fuel that could
save gasoline, you might not believe me. But suppose I
tell you this:

“Gasohol” — 10% alcohol, 90% gasoline — works as well
as straight gasoline. Since you can make alcohol from
grain or corn stalks, wood or wood waste, coal — even
garbage, it’s worth some real follow-through.

Now you’ve got something to sink your teeth into.

Lean heavier on nouns and verbs, lighter on adjectives.

Use the active voice instead of the passive. Your writing
will not have more guts.

Which of these is stronger? Active voice: “I kicked out
my money manager.” Or, passive voice: “My money
manager was kicked out by me.” (By the way, neither is
true. My son, Malcolm Jr., manages most Forbes money
— he’s a brilliant moneyman.)

Give it the best you've got IV.

When you don’t want something enough to make the
effort, making an effort is a waste.

Make your letter look appetizing — or you’ll strike out
before you even get to bat. Type it — on good-quality 8%"
x 11” stationery. Keep it neat. And use paragraphing
that makes it easier to read.

Keep your letter short — to one page, if possible. Keep
your paragraphs short. After all, who’s going to benefit if
your letter is quick and easy to read?

You.

For emphasis, underline important words. And
sometimes indent sentences as well as paragraphs.

Like this, See how well it works? (But
save it for something special.)

Make it perfect. No typos, no misspellings, no factual
errors. If you’re sloppy and let mistakes slip by, the
person reading your letter will think you don’t know
better or don’t care. Do you?

Be crystal clear. You won’t get what you’re after if your
reader doesn’t get the message.

Use good English. If you’re still in school, take all the
English and writing courses you can. The way you write
and speak can really help — or hurt.

If you’re not in school (even if you are), get the little 71-
page gem by Strunk & White, Elements of Style. It’s in
paperback. It’s fun to read and loaded with tips on good
English and good writing.

Don’t put on airs. Pretense invariably impresses only
the pretender.

Don’t exaggerate. Even once. Your reader will suspect
everything else you write.

Distinguish opinions from facts. Your opinions may be
the best in the world. But they’re not gospel. You owe it to
your reader to let him know which is which. He’ll

Give it the best you’ve got

A. Make letter look good
1.

2 .

3 .

B. Keep letter short

J. Edit well

166

appreciate it and he’ll admire you. The dumbest people I
know are those who Know It All.

Be honest. It’ll get you further in the long run. If you’re
not, you won’t rest easy until you’re found out. (The latter,
not speaking from experience.)

Edit ruthlessly. Somebody ltas said that words are sU#t
like inflated money — the more of-them that you use, the
less each one s f t h em is worth. Rr »ghfc # »i . Go through your
entire letter as many times as it takes. Se ay oh out and
Annihilate all unnecessary words, arrd sentences — even
cn t h « e paragraphs.

Sum it up and get out

The last paragraph should tell the reader exactly what
you want him to do — or what you re going to do. Short
and sweet. “May I have an appointment? Next Monday,
the 16th, I’ll call your secretary to see when it’ll be most
convenient for you.”

Close with something simple like, “Sincerely.” And for
heaven’s sake sign legibly. The biggest ego trip I know is
a completely illegible signature.

Good luck.

I hope you get what you’re after.

Sincerely,

Sum up

Years ago, International Paper sponsored a series of
advertisements, “Send me a man who reads,” to help make
Americans more aware of the value of reading.

Today, the printed word is more vital than ever. Now there is
more need than ever before for all of us to read better, write
better, and communicate better.

International Paper offers this new series in the hope that, even
in a small way, we can help.

For reprints of this article, write: “Power of the Printed
Word,” International Paper Co., Dept. 1, P.O. Box 900,
Elmsford, New York 10523.

INTERNATIONAL PAPER COMPANY

We believe in the power of the printed word.

“How to Write Clearly” by How to Write Clearly
Edward T. Thompson, Editor-in-Chief,

Reader s Digest , 1980.

If you are afraid to write, don’t be.

If you think you’ve got to string together big fancy
words and high-flying phrases, forget it.

To write well, unless you aspire to be a professional
poet or novelist, you only need to get your ideas across

167

simply and clearly.

It's not easy. But it is easier than you might imagine.

There are only three basic requirements;

First, you must want to write clearly. And I believe you
really do, if you’ve stayed this far with me.

Second, you must be willing to work hard. Thinking
means work — and that’s what it takes to do anything
well.

Third, you must know and follow some basic
guidelines.

If, while you’re writing for clarity, some lovely,
dramatic or inspired phrases or sentences come to you,
fine. Put them in.

But then with cold, objective eyes and mind ask
yourself: “Do they detract from clarity?” If they do, grit
your teeth and cut the frills.

Follow some basic guidelines

I can’t give you a complete list of “dos and don’ts” for
every writing problem you’ll ever face.

But I can give you some fundamental guidelines that
cover the most common problems.

1. Outline what you want to say.

I know that sounds grade-schoolish. But you can’t write
clearly until, before you start , you know where you will
stop.

Ironically, that’s even a problem in writing an outline
(i.e., knowing the ending before you begin).

So try this method:

•On 3" x 5" cards, write — one point to a card — all the
points you need to make.

•Divide the cards into piles — one pile for each group of
points closely related to each other. (If you were
describing an automobile, you’d put all the points about
mileage in one pile, all the points about safety in another,
and so on.)

•Arrange your piles of points in a sequence. Which are
most important should be given first or saved for last?
Which must you present before others in order to make
the others understandable?

•Now, within each pile, do the same thing — arrange
the points in logical, understandable order.

There you have your outline, needing only an
introduction and conclusion.

This is a practical way to outline. It’s also flexible. You
can add, delete or change the location of points easily.

2. Start where your readers are.

How much do they know about the subject? Don’t write
to a level higher than your readers’ knowledge of it.

CAUTION: Forget that old — and wrong — advice
about writing to a 12-year-old mentality. That’s
insulting. But do remember that your prime purpose is to
explain something, not prove that you’re smarter than
your readers.

I. Three Requirements

A. Want to write

C. Follow guidelines

II. Basic Guidelines

A. Outline material

1 .

2. Make piles according to points

3. Arrange piles in sequence

B. Start where readers are

1. How much do they know?

2 .

168

3. Avoid jargon.

Don’t use words, expressions, phrases known only to
people with specific knowledge or interests.

Example: A scientist, using scientific jargon, wrote,
“The biota exhibited a one hundred percent mortality
response.” He could have written: “All the fish died.”

4. Use familiar combinations of words.

A speech writer for President Franklin D. Roosevelt
wrote, “We are endeavoring to construct a more inclusive
society.” F.D.R. changed it to, “We’re going to make a
country in which no one is left out.”

CAUTION: By familiar combinations of words, I do
not mean incorrect grammar. That can be unc lear.
Example: John’s father says he can’t go out Friday. (Who
can’t go out? John or his father?)

5. Use “first-degree” words.

These words immediately bring an image to your
mind. Other words must be “translated” through the
first-degree word before you see the image. Those are
second/third-degree words.

First-degree words Second/third-degree words

face .visage, countenance

stay .abide, remain, reside

book.volume, tome, publication

First-degree words are usually the most precise words,
too.

6. Stick to the point

Your outline — which was more work in the beginning
— now saves you work. Because now you can ask about
any sentence you write: “Does it relate to a point in the
outline? If it doesn’t, should I add it to the outline? If not,
I’m getting off the track.” Then, full steam ahead — on
the main line.

7. Be as brief as possible.

Whatever you write, shortening — condensing —
almost always makes it tighter, straighter, easier to read
and understand.

Condensing, as Reader's Digest does it, is in large part
artistry. But it involves techniques that anyone can learn
and use.

• Present your points in logical ABC order: Here again,
your outline should save you work because, if you did it
right, your points already stand in logical ABC order —
A makes B understandable, B makes C understandable
and so on. To write in a straight line is to say something
clearly in the fewest possible words.

• Don't waste words telling people what they already
know: Notice how we edited this: “Have you ever
wondered how banks rate you as a credit risk? You line**,
of qoupqc, that f fcVaome combination of facto abou tr ^uui 1
i «o s m a, ynur jobr a n d oo on . But aotinlly , fVfany banks
have a scoring system . . .”

D.Use familiar combinations of words and correct
grammar

E.Use first degree, precise words, for example,
face; not visage

G. Be brief

1. Present points in order

2. Don’t discuss what readers know already

5 .

6 .

7. Stop, when the points are covered

169

•Cut out excess evidence and unnecessary anecdotes:
Usually, one fact or example (at most, two) will support a
point. More just belabor it. And while writing about
something may remind you of a good story, ask yourself:
“Does it really help to tell the story, or does it slow me
down?”

(Many people think Reader’s Digest articles are filled
with anecdotes. Actually, we use them sparingly and
usually for one or two reasons: either the subject is so dry
it needs some “humanity” to give it 1 ife; or the subject is so
hard to grasp, it needs anecdotes to help readers
understand. If the subject is both lively and easy to grasp,
we move right along.)

•Look for the most common word wasters: windy
phrases.

Windy phrases.Cut to . . .

at the present time.now

in the event of.if

in the majority of instances.usually

•Look for passive verbs you can make active:

Invariably, this produces a shorter sentence. “The cherry
tree was chopped down by George Washington.” (Passive
verb and nine words.) “George Washington chopped
down the cherry tree.” (Active verb and seven words.)

•Look for positive I negative sections from which you can
cut the negative: See how we did it here: “The answer doe »
nnt rnt w i t h n rnl f in nnr fl a nr incomiiat ia nro It lir i IttetIj
•weaving enough people to do the job.”

•Finally, to write more clearly by saying it in fewer
words: when you've finished, stop.

Years ago, International Paper sponsored a series of
advertisements, “Send me a man who reads,” to help make
Americans more aware of the value of reading.

Today, the printed word is more vital than ever. Now there is
more need than ever before for all of us to read better, write
better, and communicate better.

International Paper offers this new series in the hope that, even
in a small way, we can help.

For reprints of this article, write: “Power of the Printed
Word,” International Paper Co., Dept. 1, P.O. Box 900,
Elmsford, New York 10523.

INTERNATIONAL PAPER COMPANY

We believe in the power of the printed word.

170

2. The following three outlines cover fairly detailed material. Again, study the outline first. Then see if you can note the
detail (the subheads listed) while skimming, and come up with the appropriate main heads for the blank spaces in the
outline. Write your answers, check them, and go on to the next outline.

Excerpt from “Kitchen Buymanship,”
Better Homes and Gardens , May, 1973.

Refrigerators and freezers have been in the “basic
necessity” class for so long we tend to take their
services for granted. But today’s versions of these
essential helpers deserve a close look. The new models
offer more storage in less space, and more features for
the same or even less money than you’d have spent a
decade ago. Refrigerators and freezers incorporate a
host of basic improvements to justify the price.

So if it’s time to replace your present equipment,
prepare yourself for pleasant surprises. Before you
start, though, ask yourself a few questions: Is your
family size going up or down? Remember, the average
refrigerator life is about 15 years. Don’t buy a larger
model than you really need.

Do you need more or less capacity than you now
have? Would you like more freezer space in the
refrigerator or do you intend to get a separate
freezer?

Must the new equipment fit an existing space in
the kitchen or are you making some changes? If
existing space must be filled, arm yourself with the
exact dimensions that will meet your needs. Measure
carefully before you set out on your shopping trip.

Would you like the appliance or appliances to fit
flush to the wall? Do you plan to build in the
appliances, surrounding them with storage units?

After you’ve outlined your general requirements,
it’s time to think about specific types and features
that are available.

Refrigerator/freezer styles

• One-door models offer a frozen food compartment
across the top or in a corner of the top of the
refrigerator section. These frozen-food compartments
maintain a 15° to 20° F. temperature, can be used for
short-term storage of frozen foods; they are not
intended for original freezing of food. Most of these
small freezers must be defrosted manually — you
should be aware of this point before you buy.

• A combination refrigerator-freezer, with two or
more doors, is a favorite.

Some combinations have horizontal freezers at
either the top or the bottom of the appliance; others
are side-by-side models where the freezer extends
from top to bottom on one side, the refrigerator on
the other. The frozen-food sections of combinations
are insulated from the fresh-food sections. Freezers

Refrigerators and Freezers

A. Family size — up or down

B. Capacity needs — where is freezer space needed

C. Space for unit

D. Fit of unit

II.

1. Small freezer

2. Manual defrost

1. Kinds of freezers

a. horizontal — top or bottom

b. vertical

171

maintaining five degree temperatures or below will
guard the quality of your frozen foods for many
months.

Three-door combinations offer two freezers
(separate from each other, as well as a refrigerator
section). The little freezers hold ice cubes, ice cream,
and other frequently used items. The main freezer is
thus spared door openings that can affect the interior
temperature level.

Most combinations today are completely frost free
in both the refrigerator and freezer.

In all new models , you can expect these

advantages:

1. Greater safety. Federal law specifies that all
doors can be opened from the inside with as little as
15 pounds of pressure. This reduces the possibility of
tragic entrapment of children. (If you’re retiring an
old refrigerator, do keep safety in mind. Leave all
shelves in place if you intend to use the appliance as a
second refrigerator in the basement. If you’re
discarding the refrigerator, always remove the door
from the hinges.)

2. Doors on new models close smoothly, seal
magnetically, if unit is leveled properly. You get a
tighter seal to protect against temperature changes.

3. Thin-wall insulation. It not only does its job
more efficiently — it nets you more interior storage
space in appliances.

c. separate
2. Features

a. longer storage of frozen foods

b. frequently used compartments

A. Greater safety

B. Tighter seals

C. More storage in less space

Excerpt from “Granola,” Better Homes and Gardens ,

Granola

In case you haven’t yet met this popular health food,

Crunchy

granola is a crunchy combination of whole grains and
nuts. It tastes great served with milk for breakfast or

Good taste

as a snack anytime, anywhere. Granola is completely
totable. To take it along for handy, nutritious

Totable

munching on hikes, bikes, picnics, or camp-outs,
simply pack some of this cereal in sandwich bags.

Good Topper

You’ll also want to try it as a topper on your favorite
baked fruit crisp. Or, add a little butter or margarine
to the mixture for a crisp, baked pie shell.

Crisp pie shell

However you like granola, you can make it easily
at home. Part of the fun is concocting your own

II.

Granins

formula. Use a combination of grains, like wheat,
oats, bran, or wheat germ. Mix in sunflower or

pumpkin seeds if you’d like. Nuts are another
traditional ingredient. You can also include dried

Seeds

fruits, like apricots, raisins, dates, peaches, apples,
and prunes for extra flavor. We’ve provided a recipe

Nuts

as a guide, but be flexible. Happy improvising!

Dried fruits

172

3. These last two selections are somewhat easier. Note the “skeleton” outlines provided for them and then skim the
material. After one skimming, see how much of the outline you can complete. Then skim again, and fill in more of the
outline. Follow this procedure until the outline is completed.

Food stocks this year have almost dropped to an
all time low for this century. All it would take for
basic foods to start disappearing from the super
market shelves would be minor crop failures or
transportation tie-ups. (Lately, the tie-ups seem to be
an imminent reality.) If this delicate food delivery
system were to be upset, the nation could be in real
bad shape.

Already, the supplies of corn, potatoes, peas, dried
beans, canned peaches, pears and cherries have hit
bottom and cheese and butter supplies are low.

The government’s massive grain exportation
program, which was intended to strengthen the dollar
abroad caused grain stocks to sink to such a low that
thought has been given to establishing a national
reserve system. Last year’s few temporary shortages
evidently made the consumer wary and he has begun
stocking his pantries with canned goods. This surge in
the demand for canned goods has exacerbated the
tight supply situation. Perhaps what is needed is a
food delivery planning system nation-wide.

Food Shortages

III.

Smith, Ned. “Weeds in the Wind,”
National Wildlife , August, 1973, p. 25.

Dictionary definitions of “weed” tell only half the
story — the negative half. True, weeds do seem to
grow best where they aren’t wanted. They outstrip
our cultivated, mulched and sprayed garden favorites.
Some might even be considered unattractive. But to
label all weeds worthless is to deny that dandelion
tastes good with bacon, chicory is a flawless blue, and
bindweed could teach us about tenacity.

Perhaps weeds became weeds when we became too
civilized to use them. Amaranth was not a pest to the
Indian. He cultivated it and made flour of its seeds
centuries before maize was introduced from the
Southwest. European immigrants brought their own
food plants with them, and many which we now
know as weeds were cherished as edibles before they
ran wild in the New World. Though gardeners disdain
them, knowledgeable outdoorsmen still gather weeds
in the wild.

Weeds belong in the wildlife scheme. Destroy
them, and many wild creatures would be without
cover for nesting or escape, or places to catch insects
in summer and to eat seeds in winter.

But weeds have a quality which only humans —
and few humans, at that — enjoy: the intangible we

Uses for Weeds

A. Amaranth

B. European food plants

II.

III.

173

call beauty. Only the dedicated weed-watcher is
familiar with the dayflower’s crepey, azure blooms,
or the elegant cornucopias of the jewelweed. Only he
will discover the sculptured symmetry of a milkweed
blossom, or put a magnifying glass to a henbit’s
insignificant spot of color.

How unfortunate that “weed” has such a trashy
ring to it. The word narrows our tastes, and the
commonplace becomes unworthy of regard. How
much better to call weeds “wild flowers” and take a
second look at some of Nature’s finest works.

Proceed to the Flexible reading and read the directions.

Free and Easy

FLEXIBLE READING

Directions. Again, try to feel comfortable as you rapidly read this interesting article, “A Dilemma of Swans.” Some of
the facts may surprise — or even disappoint — you. But let yourself go and sustain your speed.

Don’t let your surprise keep you from getting at least 7 of the 10 items that follow correct. Press the joystick button to
begin and again when you finish. Be sure to record your scores in the Success Log Box.

Selection: Williams, Ted, “A Dilemma of Swans,”
Reprinted with permission from Yankee Magazine , published by

Yankee Inc., Dublin, N.H., July, 1980.

It is the biggest beast that flies, weighing up to 50
pounds and measuring as much as nine feet across the
wings. It commonly attacks and occasionally kills ducks,
geese, dogs, and people. It is at once a symbol of
tranquillity and chaos, of natural grace and human
ignorance. It is passionately loved and passionately
despised. It is Cygnus olor , the mute swan; and it is
thriving in southern New England.

The mute swan evolved in northern Europe and
western Asia, where it was and is revered for its beauty
and succulent flesh. It is the stuff of legend, by far the
most familiar of the world’s seven swans, considered to be
the most beautiful because of its unique habit of curving
its neck into an “S” when it swims. In Elizabethan
England mute swans could be possessed only with
approval of the crown. Each bird bore the brand of its
owner on its beak and all were presided over by the
“Royal Swanherd.” A yearly roundup called “swan-
upping” garnished the larders of British aristocracy
until the 20th century.

Cygnus olor is quiet but not mute. On occasion it has
been heard to growl, hiss, bugle, and trill. When alarmed
it utters a faint honk just before taking to the air. The
female summons her brood with a call not unlike the bark

of a puppy, and young swans (cygnets) peep like
ducklings. Mute swans fly well and swiftly, with the
wind singing through their pinions. When the air is still,
this strange, distinctive flight music can be heard at a
distance of one mile. Some ornithologists have theorized
that it is a substitute for a contact call.

The mute swan’s traditional appeal derives from more
than its good looks and delicate flavor. Mute swans
generally mate for life. Moreover, the species is unique
among waterfowl of the northern hemisphere in that the
cob (male) has been observed incubating in the absence of
the pen (female). Nor will mute swans shrink from
mortal danger in defense of their broods. It was probably
the bird’s “moral fiber” more than its grace and beauty
that inspired Henry III to adopt the motto: “Hay, Hay,
thou white swan, by Godde’s soul I am thy man.”

Shockingly intense are the emotions mute swans
wrench from human hearts. In her book The Royal Birds ,
Lillian Grace Paca writes:

“One day when I was riding in a bus on Westminster
Bridge a swan loomed up suddenly, a white apparition,
and the impact (a physical one) was tremendous. The
lovely eight-foot wings flailed at the closed windows till
the body fell, crumpled, among the wildly swerving cars.

174

As a frantic spouse (a feathered one) zoomed over the rail
to land beside the stricken mate, a policeman’s shrill
whistle halted the stream of traffic. The passersby
waited, some with actual tears in their eyes, while the
driver of the bus held a now-docile cob until an
ambulance from the nearest R.S.P.C.A. station arrived.”

Not all the intense emotions, however, issue from the
hearts of mute-swan lovers. A Connecticut duck hunter,
an earth advocate and a thinker, who demands
anonymity only because his calling has placed him
squarely in the national spotlight, puts it this way:
“There’s no mute swan like a dead mute swan.”

Then there is Rhode Island naturalist Bruce Fellman,
who writes: “What a majestic bird! What grace and
beauty! And what a god-awful pain in the neck!”

As with so many transplanted species, the popularity
of mute swans took a precipitious dip when their
admirers used them to “improve” the New World fauna.
The first releases in North America apparently occurred
on the Hudson River in 1910 and at two locations on outer
Long Island in 1912. Today the mute swan is firmly
established along the Atlantic seaboard from
Massachusetts to Delaware. Another population,
sustained in part by winter feeding, exists along Lake
Michigan’s northeastern shore.

Because mute swans, unlike other waterfowl, do not
migrate across state lines to any great extent, they do not
come under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service. Instead, the species is astate responsibility, and,
since few state fish and game agencies are set up for
extensive research, the impact that mute swans are
having on native wildlife has not been accurately
determined. There is, however, good reason to believe
that it has been substantial and that it will get worse.

One mute swan eats between eight and 14 pounds of
aquatic vegetation each day, often ripping whole plants
out by the roots. This can destroy the food supplies of
other waterfowl; and it can seriously degrade water
quality, especially when the glutted swans fly to another
pond to rest. A flock of 50 swans setting down each night
on a small pond can be a greater source of pollution than a
dozen malfunctioning septic tanks.

Oliver LaPlace has hunted rails — small wading birds
related to cranes — in the salt marshes of Connecticut for
70years. He began guiding rail hunters in 1920. Now, he
says, the rail hunting is almost gone. Rails depend on
wild rice and wild celery, and there are scarcely any of
these plants left around Oliver’s old stomping grounds. It
turns out that carp, another European import, also eat
wild rice and celery. For a while the marshes sustained a
few rails and a lot of carp. Then the mute swans moved in.

“The carp are real bad,” declares LaPlace, “but at least
they’ve got to clear out when the tide goes down. We’ve
got these swans 24 hours a day. There’s nobody doing

anything about it. They’re just letting them take over!
They root out that rice and celery just like pigs. They’re
worse than pigs!”

Tom Hoehn, a waterfowl biologist with Connecticut’s
Department of Environmental Protection, is having an
increasingly hard time seeing grace and beauty when he
gazes upon mute swans. It is estimated that 2,000 mute
swans now populate the Atlantic fly way, and about half
of these reside in Connecticut. Hoehn says he gets more
phone calls about mute swans — mostly requests to nurse
and rescue them — than about anything else. When it
comes to mute swans, he is very low on time, staff, and
patience. As far as he is concerned mute swans can look
after themselves, and they’re doing it, he says, all too
well. Basically, Hoehn finds mute swans to be “big
overgrown starlings.” “Mute swans are doing the same
thing to our native waterfowl that starlings are doing to
our native bluebirds,” he says.

Few wild creatures are as aggressive as mute swans.
Kortright (1942) described them as “ferocious,”
Eltringham (1963) as “hostile,” Paca (1963) as “fierce and
dangerous,” Frity (1967) as “savage.” Mute swans strike
with their heavy, hard-boned wings, inflicting
astonishing damage to anything sufficiently fool-hardy
or unfortunate to remain in their path. Human deaths
from mute-swan attacks have occurred in Europe and
America but they are rare, the last in New England
apparently a Massachusetts child circa 1930. Severe
injuries, including broken bones, are not so rare. There is
one report of an infuriated cob’s crushing a heavy,
galvanized bucket.

Jim Myers, senior wildlife biologist for the Rhode
Island Division of Fish and Wildlife, has been attacked
frequently and has even had angry swans climb into the
boat after him. Once a cob hit him in the hand. He likens
the experience to catching a baseball without a glove — a
line drive.

“Mute swans,” observes Myers, “are about the only
species I know that will actually fight each other to the
death. This is very rare in nature. It just doesn’t make
sense for survival, so animals usually have built-in
mechanisms for submission. Mute swans don’t seem to
have that mechanism here in the U.S. We do have male
swans killing each other on some of our salt ponds.”

Wildlife biologist Charles Willey describes the process
in his study, Mute Swans of Rhode Island: “The
unfortunate swan is usually pursued and ‘ridden’ by the
aggressor, his head being forced beneath the water until
he either drowns or succumbs from exhaustion.

A similar fate sometimes befalls other species of
waterfowl that stray into mute-swan territory. Mute
swans defend up to 12 acres; and while they kill (and
occasionally devour) only moulting, flightless waterfowl,
one mated pair can sometimes eliminate an entire pond

175

as breeding and rearing habitat for native ducks and
geese.

One answer would be to subject mute swans to hunting
pressure. They are, after all, unexcelled as table fare, as
any number of Yankee wildfowlers will confide with a sly
wink and a pat on the belly. While mute swans are
strikingly handsome, they don’t compare, by most
standards, with, say, male wood ducks or male mallards
for which the usual daily bag limits are two and four
respectively. Yet because mute swans are bold and
highly visible they are protected by state law.
Furthermore, there is only one important predator of
America’s mute swans: the snapping turtle; and, as sea
turtles decline, more and more snappers are finding
their way into turtle soup.

Almost without exception, New England game
managers say they would like to see a hunting season on
mute swans, but few believe that the public would
tolerate it. H. W. Heusmann of the Massachusetts
Division of Fisheries and Wildlife is convinced that mute
swans would be an important game species, “if they
weren’t white.” Colton Bridges, a former director of the
Division who now maestros the doings of Ducks
Unlimited in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode
Island, observes that “efforts to establish a swan season,
with no distinction between migrating whistling swans
and mutes, have not been received favorably by the Fish
and Wildlife Service because it feels that all hell would
break loose PR-wise if you open up a season on that great
big, white, beautiful bird.”

“Biologically speaking,” declares Tom Hoehn, “mute
swans should be harvested.” Hoehn represents
Connecticut on the Atlantic Waterfowl Council, a group
comprised of the fish and game leadership from the
states in the Atlantic flyway. The council’s technical
committee recently recommended a hunting season for
mute swans, but Hoehn reports that the executive board
rejected the proposal “for fear of the political
repercussions.” Earlier, the council had asserted that
“mute swans are becoming a problem in many states,
especially in New England and several mid-Atlantic
states” and that “a policy is needed for mute swans, but
seems to be avoided by most states because of social
implications.”

The alternative to hunting has been the destruction of
swan eggs and the allegedly less humane, but more
silent, wringing of swan necks. Limited, sometimes
covert, swan-control measures have been attempted in
Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and
Delaware. One effective method, refined by Rhode Island
where swan control is an ongoing program, is to
scramble the eggs inside their shells. If one breaks the
eggs, the swans will just lay new ones. If one strangles the
swans, the public will find out. So Rhode Island swan

controllers sneak up to the five-foot-wide, two-foot-high
nests and vigorously shake each four-inch-long egg.
“Obviously,” reports Charles Willey, “the researcher not
only has to know precisely what he’s doing, but he must
be fleet of foot and extremely brave.”

Swan control in Rhode Island is endorsed by the state
Audubon Society. Dr. Alfred L. Hawkes, the society’s
director, asserts that the best option of all is “not to let an
alien species get started in the first place.” Failing that,
however, as in the case of the mute swan, Hawkes calls
for intensive control. And not just egg shaking. “Addling
eggs in the swan’s nest,” he wrote in a September 1978
report, “is by far the most humane control, but it is not
practical on a sustained or wide-scale basis ... Left to its
own devices, the mute swan may soon be looked at in the
same way street pigeons are regarded by most people: too
commmonplace to be noticed, too numerous to be
welcome, too ordinary to be valued, too bothersome to be
tolerated.”

Rhode Island might still be able to “euthanize” adult
swans, as the biologists chastely put it, had the Fish and
Wildlife Division dealt with the public a bit more
intelligently. Instead, it whetted the appetite of the press
with clumsy cover-ups and Nixonesque denials. In July
1976, when The Providence Journal literally uncovered a
titillatingly macabre swan burial pit in the Great
Swamp wildlife management area, a Division
spokesman reportedly assured the paper that the ten
moldering swans therein “had killed themselves.” Later,
the same biologist was quoted as saying, “I won’t answer
any questions about our bird-control program. That’s
something we don’t want the public to know about
because they get emotional about these things.”

After a big stink, the Division promised to stop killing
adult swans. But two years later the Journal ran this
item under the headline, “Telltale Feathers Uncover
Female Swans’ Execution”:

“Despite pledging two years ago that they would not
kill swans in attempts to control their population, state
biologists on Thursday captured 36 of the birds at
Truston and took them to the nearby Great Swamp
Management Area, where they snapped the necks of the
females.”

Jim Myers notes that the natural habitat of the mute
swan is brackish water and saltwater. “When we had the
birds moving to freshwater ponds, we really became
concerned,” he says. “That was about six years ago. Now
we have them 15-plus miles inland.” Myers is
understandably a trifle jumpy when the conversation
gets around to swan control. But he stresses the need for
the program. “They’re starting to slow down production
of other waterfowl,” he says, “and what we’re looking for
is not just numbers of one species but as many different
species as possible. We’re certainly not trying to

176

eliminate the swans.”

The news about mute swans cannot, of course, be all
bad. The Americanized birds provide further proof that
man does not know best, that the absence of a species in a

given geographical area is not a function of divine error.
Then, too, the elegant mute swan is a vital link in the
coastal food chain, a natural asset to quiet salt ponds and
tranquil tidal rivers. Ask any European.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

1. The mute swan

a. is the largest beast that flies

b. can have a wing span of up to 11 feet

c. remates each season

d. migrates up and down the Eastern Seaboard

2. In Elizabethan England, mute swans

a. were imported from Asia and kept as pets by aristocrats

b. could be possessed only with the royal family's approval

c. frequently served to symbolize strength and warfare

d. were hyberdized from related swan species

3. Mute swans were introduced to the Northeastern Sea Coast when

a. the New World’s first settlers arrived

b. local hunters demanded an increase in game fowl

c. predators were needed to keep other bird species in control

d. their admirers introduced them to beautify the local countryside

4. The migration pattern of mute swans

a. usually does not go beyond state lines

b. is from Northern Massachusetts to Southern Delaware

c. is erratic and therefore under study with support from federal agencies

d. is essentially unstudied and, therefore, unknown

5. Mute swans threaten other species’ survival mainly because

a. of their enormous appetite and destructive feeding habits

b. of their natural aggressive destruction of any non-swan species

c. they have no natural enemies

d. they have been able to extend their habitat beyond “natural” boundaries

6. Mute swans attach opponents mainly

a. with whip-like neck tactics

b. with their remarkably sharp and strong beaks

c. by flying into them and knocking them down

d. with their heavy, hard boned wings

7. A rare animal behavior pattern seen almost exclusively in mute swans is

a. rearing offspring in heavily inhabited areas

b. boldness and apparent lack of fear of humans

c. a lack of sophisticated survival skills

d. fighting each other to the death

8. Public reaction to hunting swans is generally

a. supportive of the policies of the Fish and Game Department

b. highly emotional disapproval

c. similar to that for other species

d. tentative and somewhat open to change

177

9. In order to control the swan population, wildlife experts have taken to

a. scrambling their eggs

b. poisoning the pond areas that swans overrun

c. turning swans’ eggs over to the Easter bunny

d. unleashing snapping turtles in the ponds they inhabit

10. The natural habitat of mute swans is

a. freshwater ponds

b. thick marshy areas

c. brackish water and salt water

d. inland river areas

SUCCESS LOG FLEXIBLE READING

READING SPEED _

COMPREHENSION SCORE_

(10 points per correct answer)

WPM

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

READING PROGRESS GRAPH

Directions.

UNIT 7

READING EFFICIENCY INDEX

1. Refer to the three Unit 7 Success Log Boxes and enter in the computer your three reading rates and three comprehen¬
sion scores, as the screen directs.

2. Record your Unit 7 REI above and on the REI Record page in the back of your Workbook.

3. Press QZEfl to load the Reading Progress Graph. While the graph loads, read “Get Comfortable” below.

GET COMFORTABLE

Are you feeling more comfortable with your new, increased reading speed? We hope so. Because that has been
one of the main purposes of this course. As you read more and more at your increased rates, you will gain confidence
and grow more comfortable using them. You will have a good, secure feeling that you can read rapidly for serious
purposes, as well as for fun. You will be able to get the facts and flavor and enjoy reading at the same time. Reading
fast will no longer seem like a new, breathless activity, but rather, a comfortable habit that you profit from every
day.

4. Enter your Pretest and Units 1-7 REI’s w hen the screen prompts you to do so. (Obtain these from the REI Record
page in your Workbook.) Press UdliUUJ after each entry.

5. Press

START

to view your graph.

178

UNIT

THINK FAST

• To begin Unit 8 complete the steps in the STARTING UP section.

• Be sure you have inserted Cassette 4 with Side 2 up.

• After listening to the audio segment, turn to the Warm-up and read the directions.

179

WARM-UP EXERCISE

Directions. In the audio segment we reviewed the reading skills you’ve been practicing. Keep up your practice and
use the skills whenever you have the opportunity.

Warm up, as usual, by “seeing at a glance” the words in the Reading Window. Set your RWR faster than ever and go
for broke! The exercise is the same as in Unit 7. Push the joystick button when you are ready to start. Record your results
below.

WARM-UP EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY MINUTES

SCORE _

SECOND TRY MINUTES

SCORE _

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Phrase-reading exercise.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

PHRASE-READING EXERCISE Tape Counter Setting_

Directions. Maintain your faster-than-ever speed and see if you can pick up the gist of the article you’re reading, as
well as some facts. Set your words-per-minute rate faster than your previous best rate. Again, go for broke. Use the Pacer
to your advantage. Enter your rate and push the joystick button when you are ready to start. Record your rate below.

PHASE-READING EXERCISE RESULTS

FIRST TRY READING SPEED _ WPM

SECOND TRY READING SPEED _ WPM

Note: Record the tape counter setting in the space provided at the beginning of the Paced reading.
Are you going to repeat this exercise?

PRESS Y OR N, THEN

RETURN

181

Easy Does It

PACED AND TIMED READINGS

Tape Counter Setting.

Discussion. Recall our discussion of the different purposes for reading. One was to read for both the general ideas and
details. Set this purpose as you begin “Life in a Snowbank.” That title sounds like a contradiction, but it isn’t. The article
centers on how the biological community survives in winter. You’ll note that the first half focuses on the different insects,
while the second half emphasizes how the different animals maintain their species.

Directions. Set your tones-per-minute rate fast, but keep in mind your purpose: To get the general and specific infor¬
mation. Answer the questions for the first half, but don’t check them yet. Read the second half and then check all of your
work and record your rates and scores. Push the joystick button when you are ready to begin and again when you finish.

Boynton, K. L. “Life in a Snowbank.” Originally published in Yankee , February,

When J. Frost has finally finished his fall paint job
in New England, Old Man Winter takes over. Yanking
down the shades earlier and earlier in December, he
hauls in great shipments of snow, sets the thermostat
below zero, and locks up the place in a final frigid
fastening of ice. Hiding the key in a snowdrift, he
rushes off to see about lighting up the Aurora
Borealis; but the trouble is that, being busy and
forgetful, he doesn’t remember which snowbank he
hid the key in and naturally can’t find it when he
wants it again. So this is why it is New England
winters are so long.

But in spite of all that snow and ice there are
goings-on amongst some doughty wildlife residents
which show that New England in winter is a busy
place. And, of all things, certain insects are the first
to prove it.

Now it is a fact that not being equipped to
function actively in cold weather, the insect tribe by
and large shuts up shop in the fall. Some kinds survive
as adults only because they are hidden away in the
ground or tucked under logs, debris or in tree cavities
in a kind of cold storage. Others long ago gave up on
this and simply carry their species on by wintering in
the egg or pupal stage. So it is most unusual for
insects to be out at all and astonishing that some
would pick the coldest season of the year to do their
wooing.

First and foremost amongst these are the snow
fleas, since their idea of a time and place for
frolicking is a good snowbank — and who cares about
temperature? A sunny day in February with a bit of
thaw brings these minute dark-colored insects out of
the soil and ground debris by the thousands, their
social gatherings looking as if somebody had scattered
fine cinders over the snow. Small and wingless, they
have soft bodies covered with hairs, big heads and
rather a truculent look, what with their antennae,
dark eye patches on their faces, and puffed out
cheeks. Inside of these hollow face cones, by the way,

are their mouth parts, which have to be stuck outside
to work.

While snow fleas have the standard insect number
of six legs attached properly to their chest region for
walking, a fancy spring mechanism has also been
added. This is what produces the mighty leaps so
characteristic of these insects, and it consists of a
tailpiece made of a pair of appendages joined at their
base and attached to the fourth segment of the belly
area. This tailpiece is normally carried tucked up
underneath the body, pointing forward, and is held in
place by a trigger catch. It is worked by muscles, and
when the snow flea slaps this tailpiece down hard, it
straightens with a snap, propelling him upward and
forward perhaps several feet.

Hence the name “springtails” given to his clan —
and there are many kinds, some living even in water.
The snow flea belongs to the land-based springtails
who live in decaying vegetation and most of which
breed later in the spring. Specific kinds inhabit
various soil layers and, along with beetle mites, are
among the most important producers of humus.

Land springtails, including the frolicking snow
fleas, lay their eggs in the soil and in vegetative debris.
The youngsters hatch as miniature carbon copies of
the adults, shedding their skins at various growth
intervals. The winter springtails abroad on New
England snow dine on windborne pollen and fungus
spores, in this aping their Arctic cousins, the glacier
fleas, who actually live on the ice, leaving it only to
deposit their eggs on stones. For ice and snow are not
just white stuff devoid of life. Microscopic forms are
there: bacteria of various kinds, algae, pollen, fungus
spores, primitive protozoa. A bit of thaw, and a
snowbank can spring to life.

Soil animals by and large are tolerant of cold, and
hence the springtails as a clan are adapted to chill
circumstances. The snow fleas have gone furthest in
their adaptation with a reproductive set-up
apparently touched off by first thaws and increasing

182

sunlight at the turn of the year.

The crane flies — those long-legged fellows that
look like outsized mosquitoes fluttering and
swarming over water during spring and summer
evenings — also have off-beat relatives who are snow
lovers. Unlike the summer crane flies, these
snow-goers are wingless, and what with their long,
hairy legs, look more like spiders than insects as they
trudge around in the snow. These too are snow
breeders, clambering up through the snow from their
warm hiding places in leaf litter or around tree roots,
attracted by the bright sunlight. Air temperature
again seems to make no difference, it being zero one
fine day when the winter crane flies were socializing.
The females, after mating, returned through the snow
to their leaf-litter homes to deposit their eggs.

Nor are the scorpion flies to be outdone. These
fellows are the strange-looking little flies seen in
summertime around streams and brooks, particularly
in rank vegetation. The name comes from the fact
that the posterior end of the adult male does
resemble the tail of a scorpion, although it is in
reality only the genital organs enlarged and modified
into a clasping organ. Standard scorpion flies have
four wings, most kinds are carnivorous with a long,
stout beak and biting mouth parts, and they use their
long legs to capture and hold living prey.

The winter scorpion flies include the “snow born
Boreus” — the “northwind flies” as they are also
called — so indifferent to weather they may appear in
vast numbers on the snow any time from November
on. Again, they do not look much like their summer
relatives. Small and black, these snow enthusiasts are
without functional wings but their long legs make
them look like tiny grasshoppers skipping about in a
winter hoedown. The adults live only in winter and
are probably predaceous, though they also feed on
mosses. Mrs. Scorpion Fly, equipped with an
ovipositor perhaps nearly as long as her body, pokes
her eggs deep into leafy ground litter and soil, and the
larvae hatching out in about ten days resemble small
grubs with brown heads. They live in moss and
vegetable debris, dining on what’s at hand since they
are mostly vegetarian. Their pupal stage is spent
under rotten wood or under stones where, by the
way, they are to be found until the season rolls
around for their turn to be snow adults.

Also out courting in winter are certain species of
stone flies — good-sized dark insects whose long wings
are carried folded over their backs. Old in time, stone
flies are the most primitive of all winged insects, and
today’s models gracing the New England scene look
almost exactly like their ancient ancestors of some
150 million years ago. Stone flies seem to have
developed a good thing through the long time of
evolution and stick to it, carrying on the clan with a

kind of staggered production schedule covering much
of the year. With a set-up like this, plenty of stone
flies are bound to make it regularly, and hence their
long evolutionary success.

Stone flies, being aquatic insects, spend their early
days in the water, the nymphs living in masses of
leaves and ground debris, eating algae, diatoms and
dead organic matter. When the last metamorphosis is
finished, each naiad leaves the water, takes a firm
hold on stones or a bit of shrubbery preparatory to
the final molt. A slit occurs down its back, and the
adult form emerges in about a minute. As soon as its
wings are expanded and hard, it is ready to fly, albeit
rather clumsily, leaving the empty skin behind. It
may live as long as a month as an adult.

The stone flies that emerge in winter are the
hardiest of the lot. The naiads leave the water
through the first available cracks in the ice and go
through the last molt. As brand new adults they crawl
over ice and snow, feeding voraciously on blue-green
algae growing on tree trunks, stones, old logs, etc.
Concrete bridges over icy streams are scenes of much
socializing, and in due time each lady returns to the
frigid waters to deposit her 5000 to 6000 eggs.

Naturally enough, the nymphs produced by the
summer end of the clan are also in the same stream
and these will become adults with the arrival of
spring. The question immediately arises as to how it is
that this winterlaid lot does not go ahead and mature
in the next few months too, long before their
scheduled winter appearance. Biologists Harper and
Hynes, investigating the affairs of these winter stone
flies, found that indeed the eggs do hatch directly and
that the nymphs proceed to grow to a certain stage in
the cold water of late winter and early spring. But as
the water warms, something happens. Their bodies
become filled with fat globules and they burrow
down into the stream bottom to enter a kind of
holding period during which they live on accumulated
fat. Here then is an adaptation that these
winter-operating stone flies have developed to survive
the high temperatures of summer and to wait for the
proper time for their winter emergence. It is
particularly neat since it allows the egg to hatch
promptly and the nymph can use the late winter and
early spring for partial growth, be inactive during the
unfavorable time, and resume its development
immediately upon return of cool weather in early fall.
Prompt egg-hatching is a great advantage: otherwise
the egg must simply sit out the unfavorable period
where it happened to land, and stone fly eggs are on
many a water-dweller’s menu. A nymph, on the other
hand, is active, and can find a far better place to hide
during its time out of circulation — a matter of
importance in species survival.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

183

1. The author says that New England winters are long because

a. Old Man Winter’s home is in New England and he likes to stick around

b. Old Man Winter is away lighting up the Aurora Borealis and can’t get back

until May

c. Old Man Winter can’t remember in which snowbank he hid his key

d. Old Man Winter’s wife likes to stay in Florida until the maple sap starts

to flow

2. The snow flea’s mighty leaps are produced by

a. extremely chilly toes

b. extraordinarily long legs

c. a spring mechanism under its body

d. a tiny kangaroo-like tail

3. The name springtail is given to the snow flea because

a. it comes to life in the spring

b. it eats more in the spring

c. it lays its eggs in the early spring

d. it has spring mechanism

4. The unique feature of the stone fly is that he

a. is the most highly developed of all insects

b. is the most primitive of all winged insects

c. flies in erratic, concentric circles

d. looks like a short-legged grasshopper

5. When spring comes, stone fly nymphs

a. emerge from the pupae

b. feed on their body fat on stream bottoms

c. develop into full grown stone flies

d. eat voraciously to prepare for the next winter

SUCCESS LOG PACED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(20 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

Species survival is the big thing in the insect world
and, having been in business for millions of years,
insects have come up with a surprisingly large number
of ways to achieve it. Not the least of these is “cold
hardiness,” which is chiefly a matter of prevention of
freezing and naturally enough is particularly evident
in these winter-active numbers.

In the fall treetop insects and many others migrate
to the forest floors which, heavy with fallen leaves
and decaying vegetation, stay warm enough under a
blanket of snow. Other insects that winter as adults
or as larvae may not find such favorable hibernating

places and may well be subjected to freezing.
Physiological changes must occur if they are to
survive. One such change is that as the temperature
falls the production of metabolic water lessens and
more of the free body water combines with body
proteins, and this apparently lowers the insect’s
freezing point. The next step is to undergo a kind of
gradual “supercooling” — a period of deep chill
reached just before the insect’s freezing point is
reached. This involves a lowering of body
temperature along with that of the air to almost the
critical point, a rebound upward through the

184

liberation of latent heat, and then a temperature drift
downward to a stable equilibrium with the
environment. The critical point where freezing begins
varies with different insects, being about —22°F. in
many hibernating insects.

Supercooling seems to play a decisive role in the
insect’s ability to stand being frozen stiff, as indeed
some can. Arctic zoologist L. Keith Miller found
further that some ground beetles collected in winter
survived lab temperatures as low as —126°F. without
apparent injury, but that the same kind of beetles
collected in summer could not stand any freezing at
all.

Highly important also is the fact that many
hibernating insects (these Arctic ground beetles
certainly) have a high concentration of glycerol or
other polyhydric alcohols in their haemolymph which
act as a life-preserving anti-freeze. And it is probable
that the snow fleas, winter stone flies and the like are
similarly equipped, since chilling conditions favor the
synthesis of these protective substances — and hence
they can be out courting on a winter’s day.

Not that these snow-bank Romeos have a corner
on winter lovemaking, for it seems that certain other
local residents among New England’s wildlife are also
very, very sociably inclined at this time.

Take Daphnia, the water flea, for instance. Being a
crustacean and thus a member of the crab-crayfish-
lobster tribe, she is, of course, no relative of the
insect snow flea. But even before the ice melts on the
surface of cold ponds, she’s busy with family affairs.
A strange, fat little creature she is, with a body
covering so transparent that all her interior machinery
is on display. So too is the neat brood-pouch
knapsack on her back. Inside this her eggs, and later
the young when hatched out but still aboard, can be
clearly seen. Her antennae, besides adding undeniable
charm to her appearance, are highly useful in
swimming, which she does by jerking them

downward. This propels her upward, and as she
slowly sinks, the antennae, fluffing out, act as
parachutes. Neat as a pin, she uses the tip end of her
trunk, which is turned downwards and forwards and
has spines and claws on it, to keep her body covering
clean.

Fairy shrimps are also active in the ice-cold water,
dining on microscopic protozoa and algae, and
extremely busy with their domestic affairs since their
season is a short one. These are slightly larger

members, perhaps an inch long, of the crustacean
tribe that swim on their backs with some 20 segments
to their bodies. They are decorated with leaf-like
appendages which are used not only for swimming
but also in breathing and food gathering. After
mating, the adults die, this year’s eggs being next
year’s potential population held over during the

summer waiting period to hatch finally in cold
waters. The larvae that have made it this far grow
rapidly then, becoming adults just in time for the big
winter hoedown.

Other cold-water dwellers are in the family-raising
turn of mind, but a word must be said about what is
going on topside — in the forests where the air is
frigid, the snow deep and the north wind on the
howl. For even here things are definitely afoot. Under
many a feathered and furry bosom, it seems, beats a
romantic heart, undaunted by the winter cold.

Even the fierce, great horned owl, old bad news
himself to the rodent community, has mid-winter
tender feelings. Expressed in soft tremulous hooting
as early as the first January thaw, his basso-profundo
love song floats out over the wintry woods. And it
brings a lady winging to his side to sit and watch his
bowing, wing spreading and bill snapping — but alas,
she is apparently unmoved by it all. Still, all is not
lost, for the suitor flies off to return in nothing flat
with a fresh rabbit. If she accepts it, they’re engaged.

Things can move apace now. But since great
horned owls are dead set against nest building, a last
year’s abode of some red-tailed hawk is selected,
furbished up slightly, and household chores begin.
Now nobody needs to point out to owls that New
England is a very cold place at this time of year and
that their eggs have got to be kept warm. Mrs. Owl
starts her incubation the minute the first round egg is
laid, and from then on somebody is on nest duty all
the time. There is a lag of a few days before the
second egg is laid and again before number three,
which is about par for a clutch. Incubation is around
28 days, so the chicks arrive in frigid weather and
must be further brooded. This becomes no small job
since they are of different sizes because of the
original delay in the egg-laying sequence and
consequent staggered hatching. The parent owls are
extra busy at night, then, working the grocery detail,
for what with a nestful of voracious youngsters
clacking their bills for food, trip after trip has to be
made carrying cargo before they are at last stuffed for
the night. Additional supplies are still brought and
stowed on the nest’s edge for inbetween snacks, and
this helps keep up chick metabolism until the next
evening’s dinner hour rolls around.

While raising owlets in winter may seem like
making a hard enough job even tougher, the thing is
that the youngsters of these big raptor birds take a
long time to develop fully and to become efficient
hunters and therefore are dependent on their parents
for months. An early start is a must. It also nets the
owls the best nesting sites, for they are already
ensconced in the hawks’ nests by the time the rightful
owners get around to their family raising. This means
that the hawks have to delay their own affairs while

185

building another abode, a matter of importance since
they too dine on the same local rodent and rabbit
supply. There first, the owls have already set up
hunting territories. All intruders get the bum’s rush so
that the owl family is assured of a good supply of
food.

Downstairs in the forest the minks, skunks and
raccoons are off on their family-raising stints as early
as February. Also, upon observing squirrels chasing
each other up and down trees, lugging around dead
leaves, and peering into this dead tree hole and that,
Sherlocks among biologists have concluded that
apartment hunting is in order with these
buck-toothed forest inhabitants too.

Biologically speaking, all the winter breeders from
the snow fleas to the great horned owl, by jumping
the gun, have their youngsters off to a good start
before competition gets bad in the spring, an obvious
advantage for species maintenance. But there is even
something more to it. The snow fleas, for example,
being springtails, are most valuable members of the
great fraternity of soil-makers. They eat organic
matter already being worked over by soil bacteria and
protozoa and, in their role as secondary decomposers,
help break down this dead matter into a usable form
necessary to plant growth. Out working during the
snow thaw times, they keep the soil-making cycle

going even in winter.

The winter stone flies and their like supply the
streams with additional eggs and larvae which form an
important part of fish food — particularly that of
trout. The minute water fleas and fairy shrimp, being
so small, form a part of the fresh water plankton
eaten by small water dwellers who are in turn eaten
by bigger ones, and so the water food chain is kept
going even in spite of an ice cover.

The great horned owl and mink assure a supply of
predators needed to keep rodent numbers in check;
the skunks supply more scavengers and insect eaters;
the squirrels additional tree planters.

So Old Man Winter can fling down as much snow
as he likes. True enough, in New England a good
many wildlife characters who do the work of keeping
that part of the world in balance during warmer
seasons are absent in winter, either vacationing in the
South or tucked away in a hibernating or survival
nook. Still, a surprisingly large number of local
residents are on the job. It is due to their efforts that
the making of the earth, the stocking of the shelves
for the great food chain goes right on all year around,
and the delicate balance of life is maintained.

New England in winter is indeed a busy, busy
place.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

6. Which of the following does not play a part in helping an insect adapt to cold?

a. hibernation

b. supercooling

c. concentration of glycerol

d. the combining of body water with protein

7. An interesting feature of the crab-like water flea Daphnia is

a. that she lays her eggs in the ice

b. that she walks like a lobster

c. her transparent body

d. her mere skeleton of a body

8. Fairy shrimps’ bodies consist of

a. a single coiled segment

b. two hornet-like segments

c. some 20 segments

d. hundreds of segments

9. Great horned owls become “engaged” when the

a. female lays her eggs

b. female accepts a dead rabbit from the male

c. female accepts a red-tailed hawk’s nest selected by the male

d. couple finish building their new nest

10. In the final paragraphs of the article, the author explains the important role of
the winter breeders in

a. breaking up the monotony of winter

b. the never-ending food chain of nature

c. aiding the decomposition of last summer’s vegetation

d. preparing the forest for spring flowers

186

SUCCESS LOG TIMED READING

READING SPEED

WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE

(20 points per correct answer)

Note: Record the tape counter setting at the beginning of the Techniques section.

PRESS START TO CONTINUE.

Set Your Purpose

TECHNIQUES Tape Counter Setting_

Discussion. Remember! Never read a word unless you have a reason for doing so! Why? Because your understanding
will always be best when you read for a specific purpose. Whether to learn a fact or get the big picture, always plan ahead
before you dig in. Try this experiment:

1. Cover the entire list of words below with an index card.

Use a watch with a second hand as a timer, allowing yourself 15 seconds (no more) to review the list. Then re-cover it.
Do that much now.

STOP

shale

tiger

rock

tree

tin

rose

grass

celery

sand

chive

oil

wheat

car

shovel

dirt

potato

iron

salamander

hose

leopard

fork

squash

cucumber

tabby

asparagus

coot

barley

mollusk

swan

snail

parrot

gold

radish

crab

pot

mole

fox

car

parsley

dolphin

lily

squid

clay

water

endive

raccoon

cocker

gun

ivy

Now write in the space provided all the vegetables you can remember. Keep the list in this book covered. It’s important
that you do not look back at it for any reason.

187

2. Before you look at the list again, establish a purpose. Allow yourself another 15-second exposure, but this time look
for all the animal names (e.g., dog, lynx) you can find. Re-cover the list, and write down all the animal words you can
recall. Remember—keep the list covered except when you’re allowed 15 seconds to look at it.

Now compare your lists with our list. How did this experiment work?

You probably found that you could recall a greater number of words when you were looking for a specific kind. Prac¬
tice reading with a purpose while you finish this unit.

Remember to use your scanning and skimming skills too. If your purpose is to find a specific fact, for example, scan
the material to find it. If you plan to answer a question, you may want to scan first—until you come to a logical place
where the answer might be—and then read the appropriate paragraph for the answer. Or, if you want to get an overall
picture, then you might skim the entire article, as you practiced earlier.

Scan selection a for the purpose of finding out whether the article tells what percent of last year’s allocation of fuel
customers are being allowed this year. Then answer the two questions that follow. But don’t look back at the article.

This year you will not be able to have your home
fuel tank refilled at will. Empty tanks cannot be
refilled ahead of time without a hardship order from
the emergency energy assistance office. The office
will issue an emergency affidavit only in special
circumstances. And, a special circumstance is not
running out because you had the misfortune to use it
lavishly.

Evidently, you are supposed to be allocated only
85% of the amount your home consumed last year. If
you wish to gauge your conservation of heating oil,
you might total the gallons of heating oil purchased
between July 1 and June 30 of the next year. Then divide
the number of heating-degree days accumulated in the
area of the dwelling by the number of gallons of fuel oil
purchased. A degree day is the difference between the
average temperature on a given day and 65 degrees. A
total of the degree days for a month or an entire winter is
an index of the severity of the month or winter. The result
is the degree days per gallon of heating oil used to heat
the home last winter. The higher the degree days, the
colder the winter. Since thermostats are supposed to be
set lower this winter than last, the degree days per gallon
this winter should be higher than those of last winter.

Good luck!

188

3. What is the percent of last year’s allocation of fuel that customers are being allowed this year?

4. What is the most valuable information in this article? _

If you were scanning effectively, concentrating on your purpose, you should have known the answer to question 3, but
probably not to question 4. Now skim selection b to find out what the main idea of it is. Then answer the questions that
follow. Without looking back at the article.

“Economy? It’s Great! I Get 10 Hens or One Pig to the Mile,” Wisconsin State

Journal , January 30, 1974.

CORVALLIS, Ore. (UPI) — Arthur Anderson uses
pig manure to power his automatic coffee perculator
each morning.

And the Oregon State University (OSU)
microbiologist says that, if he wanted to, he could
drive to work each morning — his car powered by
cow manure.

The scientist and three OSU students are
experimenting with converting manure and other
animal waste products into methane gas. Methane,
most commonly known as natural gas, already heats
millions of American homes.

Anderson said the conversion process has been
used on small Western European farms since the
1930s. And there’s no better place to experiment
than Oregon State with its thousands of cows,
chickens, pigs, and other livestock. But he has found
that pig manure is the best — or at least the most
volatile.

The conversion process is accomplished by placing
the manure in a sealed container and permitting it to
decompose without the presence of oxygen. The
methane gas given off is then collected and used to
power most anything — even automobiles, Anderson
says.

Anderson also said that one normal cow could
produce more than 1,000 cubic meters of methane
gas yearly.

Anderson isn’t ready to hook a cow onto his car’s
fender instead of stopping at the gasoline station, but
notes an Englishman has run his car on manure and
college students in California have used chicken
manure to power a car.

5. Wliat is the main idea of this article?

6. For how many years has the conversion process been in use on some European farms?

189

If you were able to answer question 6, you’re not serving your purpose in the shortest possible time. You’re still reading
and remembering more than you need. But don’t be discouraged. Reading with a purpose takes practice. Read
paragraphs c - e and follow this same format. Read the purpose statement first, then the selection, and then the two ques¬
tions. You should be able to answer the odd-numbered questions and not the even-numbered questions.

Hubbard, Freeman, “Road to Yesterday,” Railroad Magazine , January, 1974,

pp. 24, 25.

Find out about the main character.

Bill was a small man with a slim bone structure,
but he walked briskly erect and seemed to have
boundless energy. Really, he never grew old. When he
finally crossed the Great Divide on February 24th,
1969, after having achieved a whole century of active
living, except for a few months, he died from an
accidental fall and not because of physical or mental
deterioration.

During his long creative life Bill remained alert. At
age 97, in collaboration with me, he authored a book,
The Railroad Caboose , which Donald Duke published
in 1968 and is still selling. Bill was justifiably proud
of it. And on the day before his death, he wrote my
wife a letter in firm legible script, with literary
craftsmanship — no trace of senility. She cherishes
that letter. I think that if the accident had not
occurred, William F. Knapke would be alive and
happy today — at age 104.

7. What is the main character like? _

8. Where were the two men located?

Excerpt from “Gardening in July ” Better Homes and Gardens , July, 1973.

Determine the general information contained in this article.

One of the most important parts of outdoor
gardening this time of year is proper watering. Since
rainfall varies so much, even year to year in the same
location, you’ll have to judge the requirements of
your own situation. Too little or too much moisture
will cause problems. Light sprinkling every day will
encourage surface rooting — and such roots are of
little help to plants in hot, dry weather. Too much
water, particularly in poorly drained areas, can cause
roots to rot and die. In fact, plants die more quickly
in a waterlogged spot than in one deficient in water.

Time of day for watering is not as critical as other
considerations. Usually, early morning is the best

190

time. Midday watering is not so good because there’s
more loss through evaporation. Watering late in the
day may encourage diseases, especially in muggy
weather when the surface water on leaves does not
evaporate before evening.

Do not attempt to water an established lawn by
hand-sprinkling with a hose. This method usually
results in too little water, which may be a temporary
refresher but probably will do more harm than good.
Use a mechanical device, such as a traveling or
oscillating sprinkler that will apply a fine mist over a
wide area. Let water penetrate several inches into soil.
In flower and rose beds, use a fine spray sprinkler,
directing the spray toward the soil. Check depth of
penetration with a spade. To give shrubs and trees a
thorough watering, attach a hose to a hollow rod with
perforations at the end. Plunge it into the soil about a
foot or two around the plant in several spots.

9. What is this article about?_

10. Why is midday watering not so good?

Giles, Janice Holt. Six Horse Hitch. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1969.
Find out about when the story took place.

I took out the second stage to leave Denver, March
2. We were in business again, with troop escorts,
though for some time, while the stations were rebuilt
and restocked, we had to carry provisions with us and
had no relays for the teams.

There were still occasional raids, but by the first of
April the Overland was running regularly. I had
brought the eastbound stage into Cottonwood the
evening of April 4. After supper I was playing poker
with a bunch of the boys when the station agent
came in and said, “Fort Halleck’s on the wire.”

My heart began pounding. I went to the operator,
whose face became intent as he listened to the
chattering key. Then a smile broke over his face.
“Starr! The Indians have sent word that they are
willing to turn the girls loose at Halleck. God, Starr,
you’re going to get ’em back!”

11. During what era did the scene take place? _

12. Wlien did the Overland begin running regularly? _

Proceed to the Flexible reading and read the directions.

191

Lifesaver

FLEXIBLE READING

Directions. When you have learned to set a purpose, you are truly a flexible reader! And that’s being efficient! Speed
up when you can; slow down when you have to — all according to your purpose. Start now and set a purpose for reading
some lifesaving information in “Controlling Your Car in Emergencies.” Get the important facts so you can answer 10
questions at the end. Push the joystick button when you begin and again when you finish.

Candler, Julie. “Controlling Your Car in Emergencies.” Copyright © 1974 by
Fawcett Publications, Inc. Appeared originally in Woman's Day, February,
1974, pp. 2, 82. Reprinted by permission of the author.

Time after time the reports of serious and fatal
accidents include the phrase “the vehicle went out of
control.” When that happens, the car veers crazily in
one direction, even though the frantic driver may be
steering the opposite way.

By recognizing the danger signals in advance, a
good driver usually can stay in command. That’s why
General Motors has developed an advanced
driver-education course on emergency car handling
and control. I recently visited their proving grounds,
where Russ Beadle, a veteran GM test driver, rode
with me as I handled simulated emergency situations
such as a tire blowout at sixty miles per hour.
Altogether, six such emergencies are covered in the
course that GM gives at state driver-education and
safety centers across the nation. The following tips
are based on Russ Beadle’s instructions and advice
from other safety experts.

Make your car controllable

Check your car the next time you drive it. Worn
shock absorbers can make control more difficult, so
if your car pitches on turns, or the front end bobs
down on braking, the shocks should be checked. An
excessively hard ride may be the signal that you need
new springs, which absorb road shock and distribute
it in the car frame and body. If there’s a shimmy and
shake, you can improve ride and steering
inexpensively by having all four wheels balanced.
Does the car steer hard? Have power-steering fluid
checked. If it pulls to one side when you brake, front
wheels may need aligning. Tires that are over- or
under-inflated or excessively worn can affect handling
seriously. So check tires carefully at the next gas-up.
If the car has been in an accident, the frame should
be checked. A frame bent out of alignment, even a
little, can cause instability. Every fifteen thousand
miles or so don’t forget to have a mechanic check the
most important part of all: the brakes.

If you’re in the market for a new car, consider one
of the anti-lock brake devices available on some of
the larger vehicles manufactured by Ford and General

Motors. They’re factory-installed options, priced at
around $200.

Don't be a loser

Your chances of keeping steering control can be
increased by several preventive measures. First, on
your steering wheel’s imaginary clock, keep your
hands at about 10 and 2. That’s the best position for
making a quick turn in an evasive maneuver. Second,
keep your seat and shoulder belts fastened. Otherwise
the forces created when a car whips out of control at
high speeds can throw you out of the driver’s seat in a
split second.

Third, resist the urge to jam on the brake. Any race
driver can confirm that you get in more trouble with
the brake than with the accelerator. As long as your
foot remains on the brake pedal, all four wheels stop
turning. It’s what safety experts refer to as wheel
lockup. Unless the wheels are rolling, a car cannot be
steered. Try it some Sunday on a big empty parking
lot when the pavement is slick. Jam on the brakes at
about twenty to thirty miles per hour. Then jerk the
steering wheel to the right and left. You’ll find that
the locked wheels merely slide ahead. Any time front
or rear wheels only are locked or when all four are
locked by panic braking, especially at high speeds or
on slick roads, you’re in danger of losing steering
control.

Evading an obstacle

The situation. You’re driving over the crest of a hill
and spot a stalled car just ahead in your lane. You’re
doing about maximum allowed speed on a freeway
with light traffic in the lanes to left and right.

Don't jam on the brakes. That’s the worst thing
you can do, as proven in auto-safety research tests
now under way at Calspan (former Cornell
Aeronautical Laboratory). The tests are purposely
designed so that the volunteer drivers will not have
enough time to stop before hitting a plastic barrel
that is catapulted unexpectedly in front of them. Yet
most of the drivers tend to jam on the brakes, lose
control and strike the barrel. “Some are afraid their

192

cars will turn over, which isn’t true,” says a Calspan
researcher. “The average driver is using only about 25
to 30 percent of the maneuvering capability built into
today’s cars.”

Do look for an opening to the right or left. Then
have confidence in the evasive capability and stability
of your car and steer around the obstacle. If you’re
an alert driver, you’ve been checking traffic around
you every few seconds. You know immediately in
which direction it’s safer to steer. But because there
may be a car in the rear blind spot to your right or
left, accelerate a little to get around the obstacle.
“The sudden turn will slow you down a fraction of a
second. Also, the driver in your blind spot might be
going a few miles per hour faster and hit you,”
explains Walter W. Gray. As director of driver and
traffic safety education at Indiana State University,
he trains his state’s instructors.

Controlled braking

The situation. This time you’re on a two-lane
highway as you pass over the crest of a hill and
unexpectedly encounter a stalled car in the lane
ahead. There’s an oncoming car in the opposite lane
and no road shoulder for escape to the right.

Don't jam on the brake, lock up all four wheels
and lose steering control.

Do use stab braking. Squeeze the brake pedal
gently, let up the instant you sense wheel lockup,
squeeze the brake, let up — until you’ve stopped.

Off-the-road recovery

The situation. Driving on a highway at the speed
limit, you inadvertently drop two right wheels off the
road edge. There’s a stalled car in the shoulder a few
hundred feet ahead, so you must return to the road
quickly.

Don't gradually turn the steering wheel to the left.
A road edge four to six inches higher than the
shoulder may keep your right front wheel rubbing
against the road edge. Though you keep turning the
steering wheel farther around to the left, the front
wheel doesn’t turn. Then if you give the steering
wheel a strong tug, the tire may suddenly climb the
dropoff. But by now, without realizing it, you may
have turned the steering wheel so far that the car can
veer into a lane of oncoming traffic.

Do slow down, keeping your foot off the brake
pedal. From the straddle position over the road edge,
make a positive quarter or half turn toward the road.
At the moment the tire contacts the pavement edge,
make a quick countersteering turn back to the
straight-ahead steering position. The momentum of
the car will carry it up on the road and will stay
inside the traffic lane.

Controlling a skid

The situation. You’re on a slippery curve.
Suddenly the car’s rear end starts sliding into a skid.

Don't brake or accelerate. You’re probably in a
power skid because you’ve already given the car a
little too much gas for the treacherous conditions.
The rear wheels are beginning to spin. When they
aren’t rolling, the vehicle won’t “corner” around the
curve. The spinning rear wheels can suddenly skid the
car’s rear end 180 degrees. You may end up off the
road, facing in the opposite direction from which you
were heading. Any braking only makes such a skid
worse.

Do ease your foot off the accelerator. Straighten
out the car by turning the steering wheel in the
direction the rear wheels are skidding and continue to
steer until the vehicle is under control.

Controlling a blowout

The situation. You’re driving a freeway when a
front or rear tire blows out.

Don't panic and jam on the brake or make sharp
steering movements. The car will wobble and swerve,
but it’s easy to handle with the correct emergency
technique.

Do grip the steering wheel firmly so that it won’t
be yanked out of your hands and steer the vehicle to
maintain your lane position. Let up on the
accelerator. When you’ve slowed down enough, brake
lightly and get well off onto the shoulder.

Curve control

The situation. You’re steering around a curve when
you feel the car’s weight shifting severely due to the
pull of centrifugal force. You realize that you’re
going too fast.

Don't hit the brake, stopping the wheels from
rolling and possibly veering your car out of control.

Do ease your foot off the accelerator and steer into
the turn to use your car’s maneuvering capability.
Most cars can take about three times the centrifugal
force or pull that the average driver experiences in a
turn at modest speed. The modern passenger car is
very unlikely to flip over, unless it hits something like
a curb during a violent skid. Watch for the sign
advising the recommended speed limit on every curve,
then brake to that speed before you enter the turn.

You can see GM’s course in action through a
nineteen-minute 16mm color film titled Emergency
Driving Procedure , reviewing its basics. For a free
loan of the film to schools, clubs and private groups,
General Motors invites you to write GM Film Library,
Dept. WD, 1-101 General Motors Building, Detroit,
Michigan 48202.

Another educational film on emergency car
handling is available free through Liberty Mutual
Insurance Company, Dept. WD, 10 Rockefeller Plaza,
New York, N.Y. 10020. It’s a fourteen-minute,
16mm color film, Let's Pass as Friends — Emergency
Reaction Driving.

Press the joystick button to STOP the timer.

193

1. According to the article, by recognizing danger signals in advance a good driver can

a. get ready to hit the brakes

b. stay in control

c. avoid all possible accidents

d. hit the ditch with dignity

2. What is the best thing to do if there is a shimmy or shake in your car?

a. get new springs

b. install new shocks

c. align the front wheels

d. have the wheels balanced

3. Brakes should be checked about every

a. three months

b. fifteen months

c. 3500 miles

d. 15,000 miles

4. You should resist the urge to jam on the brakes because

a. this action may cause a tire to blow out

b. the sudden stop will throw you into the steering wheel

c. that causes the wheels to lock and prevents steering

d. it is usually best to accelerate out of a danger

5. If you come upon an obstacle suddenly, the preferred action is to

a. apply the brakes

b. be sure not to swerve your automobile

c. look for an opening and accelerate slightly

d. prepare to hit it straight-on at a reduced speed

6. If it is not possible to steer around an obstacle, then go ahead and

a. use stab braking

b. hit your brakes full force

c. try to hit it squarely, not sideways

d. turn off your engine and cover your face for protection

7. What should you do if you drop both right wheels onto a shoulder four to six inches below
the road level?

a. quickly get all four wheels onto the shoulder and come to a stop

b. slow quickly, and gradually edge your car back on the pavement

c. accelerate slightly, make a positive one-half turn toward the left, and then a
quick countersteer to the right as the wheels make contact with the road

d. slow down, make a positive one-half turn toward the left, then a quick
countersteer to the right as the wheels make contact with the road

8. What should you do when the car’s rear end begins to skid?

a. stab your brakes lightly to slow down

b. ride the skid out without attempting to maneuver

c. ease off the accelerator and turn in the opposite direction of the skid

d. ease off the accelerator and turn in the direction of the skid

9. If a tire blows out on a freeway, you should

a. maintain speed until the car stops swerving

b. grip the steering wheel firmly, slow down, and keep in your lane

c. stab the brakes and pull off on the shoulder immediately

d. avoid braking, but pull onto the shoulder immediately

194

10. What should you do if your car’s weight shifts severely when rounding a curve at
high speed?

a. maintain your speed and attend to your steering

b. brake lightly and steer away from the turn

c. decelerate and steer into the turn

d. brake before you hit the sharpest part of the curve and then accelerate

SUCCESS LOG FLEXIBLE READING

READING SPEED _ WPM

COMPREHENSION SCORE_%

(20 points per correct answer)

PRESS

START

TO CONTINUE.

READING PROGRESS GRAPH UNIT 8

Directions READING EFFICIENCY INDEX.

1. Refer to the three Unit 8 Success Log Boxes and enter in the computer your three reading rates and three comprehen¬
sion scores, as the screen directs.

2. Record your Unit 8 REI above and on the REI Record page in the back of your Workbook.

3. Press QQ31 to load the Reading Progress Graph. While the graph loads, read “Getting What You Go After—for a
Lifetime” below.

GETTING WHAT YOU GO AFTER—FOR A LIFETIME

By now you’re probably reading twice as fast—at least in some selections—as you did at the beginning. Does your
graph show this? And, equally important, you have confidence in your own ability to learn to read faster, more effec¬
tively.

You’ve been thinking about goal setting in reading for a purpose. Learning how much help a purpose can be—to
help you gain momentum, and to get what you want from your reading.

Now, however, is the time to do some broader personal goal setting. Discover all the ways your growing speed
reading skills can make your life and work easier, more interesting, more profitable, and more fun.

To maintain the gains you’ve made, or to fine-tune your skills further, or even to make further increases in speed,
you know it takes practice. This practice will keep you in “mental shape”—like being in physical shape to participate
in a sport. Work enthusiastically and you’ll be surprised at how much more progress you can make. To protect your
gains—and limit your losses—read the following section, “Maintaining Your ATARI Speed Reading Skills.”

4. Enter your Pretest and Units 1-8 REI’ s when the screen prompts you to do so. (Obtain these from the REI Record
page in your Workbook.) Then press E3BE3 -

5. Press

START

to view your graph.

195

MAINTAINING YOUR ATARI
SPEED READING SKILLS

You’ve invested a lot of time and work in learning how to read faster and more efficiently. You’ve formed new reading
habits and developed new skills. You have learned how to work hard and have benefited from your successful results.
These “gains” are yours to keep.

Maintain them by using these new skills in your daily reading. Continue to be a flexible reader, one who reads with a
purpose and uses skills according to that purpose. Remember that reading fast and efficiently is like playing a sport:
Good performance requires practice. And, the more practice, the better you become.

While frequent use of your new reading skills is the best way to maintain them, you may, at some point want to
“resharpen” and fine-tune them to give your speed a boost. Review, perhaps in three or six months, material in your
Workbook, for example, a Warm-up, Phrase-reading, or Techniques exercise. Also, use the Pacing and Timing program
included in ATARI Speed Reading on Cassette 5. It will time and pace you with the audible tones on materials other than
your ATARI Workbook. Readers have expressed that they would like help in pacing themselves on personal, recrea¬
tional, and work-related materials. This cassette will help you check yourself, and encourage you to maintain your speed
and comprehension achieved in the ATARI course. Directions for using Cassette 5 are included on the tape and also
listed below for convenience.

Begin using your new reading skills now. Set a goal for yourself: Try to maintain your gains and limit your losses. Keep
this goal in mind and keep your ATARI Speed Reading materials handy. Use them in the future as a review and
refresher. In the meantime, enjoy—personally and professionally—your new abilities as a rapid and efficient reader.

STEPS FOR USING CASSETTE 5

1. To load Cassette 5 follow the directions in the STARTING UP section.

2. Select reading material in which each page has a consistent amount of print.

3. Determine the average number of words per page for three pages. When you count, include each space between
words. Seven spaces equals one word.

4. Enter the average number of words per page. Press ■sUWsHfa .

5. Select a beginning tones-per-minute rate, and push the joystick button to start and stop the timer.

6. When you finish reading, enter the number of pages you read and press . Your rate in words per minute will

be displayed.

PRACTICE RESULTS

READING SPEED DATE COMPLETED

_ WPM _

WPM __

197

ANSWER KEY

CHECK YOUR ANSWERS HERE

Find answers not given in this key by reviewing materials more slowly.

PRE-TEST

1. c 2. a 3. b 4. b 5. a 6. d 7. c 8. d 9. c 10. b

UNIT 1

PACED

1. c

2. b

4. a

5. d

6. a

7. c

8. b

9. d

10.

TIMED

1. c

2. a

4. b

5. c

6. d

7. a

8. c

9. a

10.

TECHNIQUES

1 .

animals

15. containers

29.

camping equipment

states

16. parts of a gun

30.

reptiles

flowers

17. objects on which to recline

31.

parts of a flower

trees

18. writing objects

32.

overlayer clothes

felines

19. lawn tools

33.

emotions

tools

20. reflecting surfaces

34.

activities with little physical

Great Lakes

21. direction indicators

involvement

tack

22. camera equipment

35.

elements of a bullfight

vegetables

23. protective objects

36.

terms associated with a hospital

10.

first aid supplies

24. objects for the neck

37.

philosophers

11.

fasteners

25. vehicles

38.

components of a government

12.

kitchen utensils

26. house appliances

39.

small cars

13.

clothes

27. birds

40.

New England states

14.

lengths of material

28. bicycle parts

41.

western states

42. green vegetables

FLEXIBLE

1. c 2. a 3. b 4. b 5. d 6. d 7. b 8. d 9. b 10. a

UNIT 2

PACED

1. b 2. a 3. b 4. d 5. d 6. b 7. c 8. a 9. c 10. d

199

TIMED

1. d 2. b 3. b 4. c 5. d 6. a 7. b 8. c 9. a 10. d

FLEXIBLE

1. b 2. a 3. d 4. b 5. d

UNIT 3

PACED

I. a 2. c 3. b 4. c 5. d 6. d 7. b 8. c 9. a 10. c

TIMED

II. d 12. d 13. b 14. a 15. b 16. a 17. d 18. c 19. d 20. a.

FLEXIBLE

1. d 2. a 3. b 4. b 5. d

UNIT 4

PACED

1. c 2. b 3. a 4. b 5. d 6. d 7. c 8. a 9. d 10. d

TIMED

1. c 2. d 3. a 4. b 5. c 6. a 7. a 8. c 9. c 10. d

TECHNIQUES

3. d. drifting, island, New Mexico, casting, shoreline, countdown lure, lure, sunk, I, not familiar, lake’s
bottom, bass, clue, lure settled, line, tightened, hit, fast to a bass, burst forth, eight-pounder,
three, bass, this size, active fighters, best, filleting.

e. plane, never found, tragedy, 1964, 1971, missing planes, never, found, shock, pilot’s family,
waiting, uncertainty, waning hope, anguish, emotional factors, financial considerations, estates
cannot be settled, presumption of death, problems, insurance, family finances, find missing
aircraft.

f. summers, mid-fifties, flying, plane, Labrador, wilderness, Indians, traveled, prospectors,
trappers, search, minerals, furs, woodsman, evaluate, timber potential, military, bush pilots, me,
exploring, waters, major project, labor of love.

g. innate trait, American character, assumption, all it takes, drive a car, driver, wheel, key, button,
every driver, some idea, workings, 1000, no idea, under, hood, worry, maintenance,
mechanic, automobile industry, want it more, automatic, better, sells, driver education
courses, spreading, hopeful sign, teaching basics, longer life, car, driver.

h. first, second world wars, pigeons, messages, Europe, Birds, decorations, Allied forces, dropped,
pigeons, with agents, used, reliable, communication, first, pigeon returned, 1940, descended,
night, nine miles, in concealment, finally released, back, that afternoon, vital information, this
service, Dickin Medal.

200

i. everyone else, laughing, why, you, only one nervous, taking a test, you aren’t, only one, look
around, she’s, giggling, sign, nervousness, people, impulsive, when frightened, loud-pitched voices,
boisterous students, nervous, pounding, hearts, fingering, pencils, uncomfortable, feel, smoke,
self-conscious, resharpening, pencils, postponing, test.

Most students are nervous about taking tests and show it in a variety of ways.

j. Jaguars, reinforce their relationships, tactile gestures, Head rubbing, social licking, close
relationship, mothers, cubs, continues, two years, that time, cubs, fend, themselves, dependence,
Indians, Peru, believe, chiefs, shamans, transformed, jaguars, after death, Jivaros, food, dead
chief, two years, live independently, mature jaguar.

Jaguar cubs’ maternal dependence is reinforced by tactile gestures.

k. 1862, under 2,000 banks, issuing currency, circulated, discount, reflected confidence, individual
bank, this point, no national currency, devaluation, not exist, your savings, lost everything, bank
closed, lost, when, bills, sold, discount, best way, keep, value, assets, gold coins, own possession.

The hazards of saving money in 1862.

5. 1. Migrating animals must have a very precise “internal compass.”

m. The unusualness of twins may help explain their important role in mythology and culture.

n. Mallards have a great ability to adapt to changing conditions.

o. A group of dolphins saved a distressed sea lion from killer whales.

p. The nature of the Commander Islands and how they were discovered.

q. The coral towers supported a rich community of life.

r. Cock pheasants are rugged and aggressive in their social relationships.

s. The conflicts involved in developing the Sawtooth Range may be resolved soon.

t. Using a computer the Dutch have found a new way to battle air pollution.

u. The crocodile is a very highly developed modern reptile.

FLEXIBLE

1. b 2. d 3. b 4. c 5. a

UNIT 5

PACED

1. c 2. d 3. b 4. c 5. b

TIMED

6. d 7. d 8. a 9. b 10. c

TECHNIQUES

The advantages of skimming different types
of reading material.

A new method of tire disposal alleviates
environmental problems.

Why the walking catfish poses a threat to the
environment.

Splitting wood could be an outlet for physi¬
cal energy and psychological tensions.

Each generation has its fads which the next
generation has trouble understanding.

A good honest attempt to sell your house
first by yourself may be worthwhile.

Banding birds has led to interesting discoveries
about their migration

Food labeling regulations have been made
more stringent and more useful.

FLEXIBLE

1. b 2. a 3. b 4. c 5. a

201

UNIT 6

PACED

1. c 2. c

TIMED

1. a 2. d

3. b 4. d

3. b 4. a

5. d 6. d

5. a 6. b

7. d 8. a

7. b 8. d

9. d 10. c

9. a 10. a

TECHNIQUES

1 .

c. On their surface bureaucracies are impersonal and rational. But the words “bureaucracy” and
“bureaucratic” have come to connote an inefficient, rule-bound, maze-like system that obstructs
rather than facilitates obtaining services.

d. We had survived the gantlet — and the brew was our reward.

e. They are interested in improving their vocabulary and have found these techniques helpful.

f. Families today, as in yesteryear, are the primary care system for their members, from the
newborn to the elderly.

g. No topic sentence.

h. 1. yes — 10 million

2. no

3. most are born with it

4. men

5. no ~ they often aren’t
aware of their affliction

6. light

7. nothing

8. no — rarely

i. 9. F

10. F

11. F

12. T

13. F

14. T

15. F

16. T

17. T

18. F

19. F

20. F

21. T

22. F

23. F

24. T

j. 25. T

26. F

27. F

28. F

29. T

30. T

31. F

32. F

33. T

34. T

35. T

36. F

202

k. 37. No

38. Camping

39. No

40. Suffocate, injure himself, or
get lost

41. No

42. Anthropomorphism

43. Other pets

44. No

45. Only at request of owner

l. 46. 1 million dollars

47. Yes

48. Liability and comprehensive

49. No

50. Yes

51. False

52. False

53. Yes

54. False

FLEXIBLE

1. b 2. c 3. a 4. d 5. b

UNIT 7

PACED

1. b 2. d

TIMED

1. a 2. c

3. c 4. d

5. a 6. b

5. d 6. b

7. b 8. b

7. a 8. d

9. a 10. d

9. c 10. c

TECHNIQUES

1. Tea: I. Black

A. Most popular in U.S.

B. Taste — rich and robust

C. Fermented — when oxidized, leaves turn bright copper

1. Assam

2. Darjeeling

3. Earl Grey

4. English Breakfast

5. Lapsang Souchong
II. Green

A. Taste — distinctive

B. Color — light

C. Leaves — softened by steaming and heating

D. Kinds

1. Basket Fired

2. Gunpowder

203

III.

IV.

Oolong

A. Compromise between black and green

B. Color — light

C. Partially fermented — leaves turn green-brown

D. Kinds

1. Formosa Oolong

2. Jasmine

3. Peppermint
Teas Blended

A. Flowers

B. Fruit peels

C. Sugar

D. Spices
Instant Teas

A. Plain

B. Plain with sugar and lemon

C. Plain with non-caloric sweetener

How to Write a Business Letter:

I. Know what you want

A. List your major points

B. To respond, refer to other person’s letter

C. Answer promptly

II. Plung right in

A. Call person by name

B. State purpose in first paragraph

C. Refer to dates of previous letters

III. Write a pleasing letter

A. Be positive

B. Be nice

C. Be natural (read your letter outloud to check it)

D. Don’t be cute or flippant

E. Use a sense of humor

F. Be specific

G. Use mainly nouns and verbs and

fewer adjectives, write in the active voice

IV. Give it the best you’ve got

A. Make letter look good.

1. Type it

2. Be neat

3. Use paragraphs

B. Keep letter short

C. Make letter perfect

D. Be clear

E. Use good grammar

F. Don’t put on airs

G. Don’t exaggerate

H. Distinguish opinions from fact

I. Be honest

J. Edit well

V. Sum up

A. Say what you want

B. Close simply

204

How to Write Clearly:

I. Three Requirements

A. Want to write

B. Work hard

C. Follow guidelines

II. Basic Guidelines

A. Outline material

1. Use 3x5 cards

2. Make piles according to points

3. Arrange piles in sequence

4. Arrange points within each pile

B. Start where readers are

1. How much do they know?

2. Explain material — don’t act smarter

C. Avoid jargon

D. Use familiar combinations of words
and correct grammar

E. Use first degree, precise words,
for example, face; not visage

F. Stick to the point

G. Be brief

1. Present points in order

2. Don’t discuss what readers know already

3. Avoid having excess evidence

4. Avoid “windy” phrases

5. Write in active voice

6. Avoid negative words where possible

7. Stop, when the points are covered

2. Refrigerators & Freezers:

I. Factors to consider when buying

A. Family size — up or down

B. Capacity needs — where is freezer space needed

C. Space for unit

D. Fit of unit
II. Available styles

A. One door

1. Small freezer

2. Manual defrost

B. Two or more doors

1. Kinds of freezers

a. horizontal — top or bottom

b. vertical

c. separate

2. Features

a. longer storage of frozen foods

b. frequently used compartments

III. Advantages of New Models

A. Greater safety

B. Tighter seals

C. More storage in less space

Granola:

I. Characteristics

A. Crunchy

B. Good taste

C. To table

D. Good topper

E. Crisp pie shell

II. Ingredients

A. Grains

B. Seeds

C. Nuts

D. Dried fruits

Food Shortage

I. Reasons for complete disappearance

A. Minor crop failure

B. Transportation tie-up

II. Current low supplies

A. Corn

B. Potatoes

C. Peas

D. Dried Beans

E. Canned Peaches

F. Pears

G. Cherries

H. Cheese

I. Butter

III. Causes for current low supplies

A. Exportation program

B. Consumer stock piling

Uses for Weeds:

I. Food

A. Amaranth

B. European food plants

II. Cover

A. Nesting

B. Escape

C. Place to catch insects in summer

D. Place to eat seeds in winter

III. Beauty

A. Dayflower

B. Jewelweed

C. Milkweed

D. Henbit

FLEXIBLE

1. a 2. b 3. d 4. a 5. a 6. d 7. d 8. b 9. a 10. c

206

UNIT 8

PACED

1. c 2. c 3. d 4. b 5. b

TIMED

6. a 7. c 8. c 9. b 10. b

FLEXIBLE

1. b 2. d 3. d 4. c 5. c 6. a 7. d 8. d 9. b 10. c

207

READING EFFICIENCY INDEX RECORD

UNITS 1-8

As you complete each of Units 1-8, record your REI in the appropriate spaces. This summary will provide a handy
reference when you need to enter each REI in the computer. You may obtain all your information from this one page, in¬
stead of having to refer to each separate unit. Keep it up to date!

REI DATE COMPLETED

Pretest _ WPM _

Unit 1 WPM _

Unit 2 _ WPM _

Unit 3 _ WPM _

Unit 4 _ WPM _

Unit 5 _ WPM _

Unit 6 _ WPM _

Unit 7 WPM _

Unit 8 WPM

209

ATARI®

A Warner Communications Company

C060076 REV. A

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